PHOTO COLLECTION: Olympics IOC Election
International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach speaks during the 144th session which will elect the new IOC President, in Costa Navarino, western Greece, Wednesday, March 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)
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Yahoo
3 days ago
- Yahoo
Algerian Boxer Imane Khelif Skips Tournament Amid Controversy Over Mandatory Sex Testing
Algerian boxer Imane Khelif has reportedly skipped a tournament following World Boxing's new mandatory "gender tests." Khelif found herself at the center of an intense debate over her sex during the 2024 Paris Olympics, which saw her accused of being male by several notable figures. This controversy was reignited after a 2023 chromosome test suggesting an XY karyotype resurfaced. However, Imane Khelif has maintained her female identity, affirming she was born and raised a girl. Khelif, the Algerian boxer embroiled in ongoing sex eligibility debates, has chosen not to participate in an upcoming boxing tournament in the Netherlands following World Boxing's recent directive mandating sex verification tests for all athletes. Although she had originally planned to make her return to the ring at the Hotel Eindhoven tournament, she failed to register before the deadline, which came just days after World Boxing announced the new testing requirements. According to the New York Post, Eindhoven's Mayor, Jeroen Dijsselbloem, voiced strong opposition to World Boxing's move, condemning the mandatory tests as discriminatory. In a letter addressed to the Dutch and International Boxing Federations, he wrote, "As far as we are concerned, all athletes are welcome in Eindhoven. Excluding athletes based on controversial 'gender tests' certainly does not fit in with that." He called for Khelif to be allowed to compete regardless, adding: "We are expressing our disapproval of this decision today and are calling on the organization to admit Imane Khelif after all." Khelif's withdrawal follows renewed scrutiny over her eligibility after alleged sex-test results from the 2023 World Championships resurfaced. According to journalist Alan Abrahamson, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) had been warned more than a year ago that Khelif's DNA indicated a "male" profile. 3 Wire Sports recently published a medical document from a chromosome test conducted in March 2023 in New Delhi. The test, which reportedly led to Khelif's disqualification from that year's championship, described her karyotype as "abnormal," showing an XY chromosome pattern, typically associated with males. The document bore the official letterhead of Dr Lal Path Labs, an institution accredited by the College of American Pathologists and certified by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). These alleged findings directly contradict IOC spokesperson Mark Adams, who previously dismissed the test as "ad hoc" and "not legitimate" during a press briefing at the Paris Olympics. At the height of the controversy in 2023, Khelif was disqualified from the Women's World Boxing Championships just before the gold medal bout, after questions emerged about her eligibility to compete in the women's category. The International Boxing Association (IBA) declared that both Khelif and Taiwan's Lin Yu-ting were excluded due to their "failure to meet the eligibility criteria for participating in the women's competition, as set and laid out in the IBA Regulations." According to the IBA, Khelif underwent two gender verification tests; one in 2022 and another in 2023. After her disqualification, she initially appealed the decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), but later withdrew the appeal, making the IBA's ruling legally binding. The IBA insisted the decision was the result of a "meticulous review" and was necessary "to uphold the level of fairness and utmost integrity of the competition." Despite the controversy, Khelif went on to represent Algeria at the Paris Olympics and ultimately secured a gold medal in the women's welterweight category. The International Olympic Committee (IOC), at the time, defended her participation. "Everyone competing in the women's category is complying with the competition eligibility rules," IOC spokesperson Mark Adams said during the Games, per Fox News. "They are women in their passports, and it's stated that this is the case that they are female." Throughout the ongoing dispute, Khelif has consistently affirmed her identity as female. She has even taken legal action against those who have criticized her on social media. Before World Boxing's ruling, Khelif had intentions to compete in the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles, despite former President Donald Trump's executive order banning men from women's sports. Speaking to ITV, Khelif clarified that the policy does not affect her: "I will give you a straightforward answer: the U.S. president issued a decision related to transgender policies in America. I am not transgender. This does not concern me, and it does not intimidate me. That is my response." She added, "For me, I see myself as a girl, just like any other girl. I was born a girl, raised as a girl, and have lived my entire life as one."
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Yahoo
Will Trump's new travel ban impact the Olympics in the U.S.?
Questions are being raised about how the 2028 Summer Games in Los Angeles will be impacted by a new ban on citizens from 12 countries entering the United States announced this week by President Donald Trump. The countries listed in the travel ban that is set to take effect Monday are Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, the Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. The presidential proclamation intended to protect the U.S. 'from foreign terrorists and other national security and public safety threats' also calls for heightened restrictions on visitors from Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela. There is an exception for 'any athlete or member of an athletic team, including coaches, persons performing a necessary support role, and immediate relatives, traveling for the World Cup, Olympics, or other major sporting event as determined by the Secretary of State.' The U.S., along with Canada and Mexico, is hosting soccer's FIFA World Cup next year, with matches scheduled across the country, including in Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, LA, Miami, Philadelphia, Seattle and Santa Clara, as well as in New York and New Jersey. But it's the world's next Summer Olympics, being held in Los Angeles in three years, that Utahns will be watching more closely, given that the state will be the site of a second Winter Games in 2034. Organizers of the LA Games, who were meeting with members of the International Olympic Committee's coordination committee in California when Trump announced the ban, didn't sound too concerned during a news conference Thursday covered by NBC 4 Los Angeles. 'It was very clear in the directive that the Olympics require special consideration and I actually want to thank the federal government for recognizing that,' LA28 chairman and president Casey Wasserman told reporters. 'It's very clear that the federal government understands that that's an environment that they will be accommodating and provide for,' he said. 'We have great confidence that that will only continue. It has been the case to date and it will certainly be the case going forward through the Games.' Nicole Hoevertsz, an IOC vice president from Aruba and the coordination commission chair, said at the news conference the anticipation is that the U.S. government will cooperate as has been done for past American Olympics. 'That is something that we will be definitely looking at and making sure that it is guaranteed as well,' she said. 'We are very confident that this is going to be accomplished. I'm sure this is going to be executed well.' The proclamation does not spell out how the travel ban affects fans and others from targeted countries. Huge international crowds are expected at the World Cup and at the Olympics, which has athletes coming from more than 200 countries. Wasserman reportedly said he does not expect ticket sales to the 2028 Games to be affected. Also up in the air is what the ban means for athletes from those countries coming to the U.S. to train, compete or even to play for professional sports teams, the BBC reported, noting the federal government has yet to clarify how a 'major sporting event' will be defined. 'I think people from around the world, and Americans going to these events, would want to see actions like this,' U.S State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said at a press briefing Thursday. 'This is part of what it means to host an event,' Pigott told reporters, adding that the administration wants people to be able to attend safely. 'We take security concerns extremely seriously.' Organizers of Utah's 2034 Winter Games say they're not worried about the ban. Fraser Bullock, president and executive chair of the Organizing Committee for the 2034 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, told the Deseret News a lot can change in coming years. 'We will see many world and country dynamics between now and 2034,' Bullock said. 'Our challenge — and opportunity — is to work through anything that may come our way. We did it before and we can do it again.'
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Yahoo
Los Angeles Olympics bosses speak out on Trump's latest travel ban impact
Los Angeles 2028 Olympics organisers have expressed confidence that Donald Trump's latest travel ban will not prevent participants from entering the US. Planning and preparation for the event have made "significant progress" as LA28 chairman and president Casey Wasserman thanked the federal government for recognising that the Olympics require special consideration. During a news conference at the Los Angeles Convention Center, Wasserman said: "It was very clear in the directive that the Olympics require special consideration and I actually want to thank the federal government for recognising that. 'It's very clear that the federal government understands that that's an environment that they will be accommodating and provide for. 'We have great confidence that that will only continue. It has been the case to date and it will certainly be the case going forward through the games." International Olympic Committee member Nicole Hoevertsz anticipates the US government will cooperate, as it did in hosting previous Olympics. "That is something that we will be definitely looking at and making sure that it is guaranteed as well," she said. "We are very confident that this is going to be accomplished. I'm sure this is going to be executed well." Sixteen IOC members recently concluded a three-day visit, inspecting multiple venue locations, including Dodger Stadium. The IOC's Coordination Commission was last in the city in November. 'We've seen significant progress,' Hoevertsz said. 'We leave the city very confident with the road ahead.' Noting the games are 1,135 days from opening on July 14, 2028, Wasserman said, "We are in delivery mode now.' Saturday marks the six-month anniversary of the start of the deadly wildfires that devastated Pacific Palisades on the city's west side and the community of Altadena, northeast of downtown. 'In California, there are some obvious things you should be prepared for — earthquakes, wildfires,' Wasserman said. 'You certainly hope that they never happen, but shame on us if we're not prepared for any and every kind of eventuality because that is our job.' Reynold Hoover, who runs the day-to-day work of LA28 as its CEO, said contingency planning is ongoing. 'The wildfires gave us an opportunity within the organisation to think a little bit differently about how we're structured and how we impact the community and how we think about sustainability,' he said. From a financial standpoint, Wasserman said he's 'incredibly confident' the games will turn a profit. 'Frankly, losing money is not really an option for us. We understand that while there is a backstop from the city, that is not something we ever intend to get close to,' he said. 'We have built our entire delivery to be tracked against the revenue we create, which is why we are being so aggressive, and have been for a long time, on generating as much revenue as possible.' Wasserman said LA28 is 'well over" 60 per cent in contracted revenue. 'We have more revenue today contracted than Paris did total revenue," he said, 'and we haven't sold a ticket yet."
