A boxer considered a “biological male” defeated an Italian woman in one of the most controversial Olympic fights in history today.
The fight lasted 46 seconds and her Italian opponent threw her helmet to the ground as the fight was abandoned.
She refused the handshake, fell to the canvas and appeared to wipe away a tear.
Algerian boxer Imane Khelif, 25, fought Italian Angela Carini, 25, despite being banned from a major boxing match ahead of the Olympics.
Carini appeared to wipe away a tear after being hit twice and leaving the fight.
Italy’s Angela Carini, 25, fell to her knees in tears after losing the fight to her Algerian opponent Imane Khelif in just 46 seconds.
Carini (pictured) was violently attacked in the clash, which comes amid a gender dispute over her opponent, who was banned from fighting in the world championships after being deemed “biologically male”.
Controversial Algerian wrestler Imane Khelif (center) faced Carini in this morning’s Olympic welterweight bout
It was not immediately clear whether the Italian had stopped the fight in protest against her opponent or felt the blows she received were too strong.
Khelif was banned from last year’s world championships after failing testosterone tests used to establish gender classification.
But despite her problems in the gender test, she was admitted to the Olympics amid great fanfare.
Officials for the Paris 2024 Olympics have accepted her as a woman and state this in her official biography for the games.
Another female boxer, Lin Yu-ting of Taiwan, was also disqualified from the 2023 Women’s World Boxing Championships for failing a gender eligibility test.
Former world featherweight champion Barry McGuigan, now president of the Professional Boxing Association, said it was a “shocking” and “pathetic” decision to allow “a man” to fight women.
Umar Kremlev, president of the International Boxing Association (IBA), said that after a series of DNA tests, the association “discovered athletes who were trying to deceive their colleagues and pretended to be women.”
Kremlev said tests “proved they had XY chromosomes and were therefore excluded from sporting events.”
The Italian fighter (in blue) refused the handshake and fell to the canvas, apparently wiping away a tear. Winner Khelif is pictured in red as her opponent leaves the ring.
Italy’s sports minister, Andrea Abodi, expressed concern about Khelif’s performance, but Angela Carini said publicly that “respect” for her opponents was her mantra.
She said: “Boxing is a sport that teaches you to have respect for your opponent. It can be a weapon in life, but only for defence. It cannot and should not become abuse. Like any sport, it can become a vehicle for venting anger and pain.”
The Algerian Olympic Committee has condemned attacks on its boxer as “unfounded” after questions were raised about her participation in the Paris Olympics.
But Khelif, who competed at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, only fell into controversy after failing tests last year in New Delhi.
He received a loud applause from his loyal Algerian fans as he entered the ring, but there were several boos.
Standing at 1.75 metres tall and two inches taller than her police officer opponent, Khelif showed her power with a series of powerful punches at the start of the three-round fight.
But it was all over in less than a minute.
The clash comes amid a gender storm at the Olympics over “biologically male” wrestlers competing in the women’s divisions.
