Latest news with #gendercontroversy
Fox News
5 days ago
- Sport
- Fox News
Controversial boxer Imane Khelif skipping competition following World Boxing's new mandatory sex testing
Imane Khelif, the boxer at the center of the Olympic gender controversy, is skipping a boxing tournament in the Netherlands after World Boxing announced mandatory sex testing for all athletes. The Algerian boxer, who won gold at the Paris Games last summer amid scrutiny over her eligibility, did not register in time for the event before applications closed on Thursday. Khelif had intended to return to international competition at the tournament in Hotel Eindhoven before World Boxing announced its new sex testing policy last Friday. Eindhoven Mayor Jeroen Dijsselbloem criticized World Boxing's decision. "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," Dijsselbloem wrote in a letter addressed to the Dutch Boxing Federation and International Boxing Federation. "We are expressing our disapproval of this decision today and are calling on the organization to admit Imane Khelif after all." 3 Wire Sports, citing medical documents from chromosome tests given by the International Boxing Association (IBA) before the 2022 and 2023 world championships, reported that Khelif's DNA showed "markers with male karyotypes." The International Olympic Committee (IOC) derecognized the IBA amid concerns about the organization's governance, financial reliance on Russian state energy firm Gazprom and integrity of the bouts. "Chromosome analysis reveals Male karyotype. No numerical or chromosomal anomalies detected at 450-550 banding resolution," a screenshot of the document on 3 Wire Sports read. The test was at an accredited lab in New Delhi, called Dr. Lal PathLabs, before the boxing championships, according to 3 Wire Sports. Fox News Digital reached out to World Boxing, the Algerian Olympic Committee and reps for Khelif for comment. The IOC issued a statement to Fox News Digital on Tuesday morning. "The IOC has always made it clear that eligibility criteria are the responsibility of the respective International Federation," the IOC said. "The factors that matter to sports performance are unique to each sport, discipline, and/or event. We await the full details how sex testing will be implemented in a safe, fair and legally enforceable way." Khelif was disqualified from the 2023 championships before a gold medal bout over gender eligibility issues. The boxer was thrust into the global spotlight after qualifying for the Olympics, with the gender controversy coming to light. Khelif defeated Angela Carini in the initial fight during the Paris Olympics, and the IOC defended Khelif. As the controversy grew, Khelif kept on winning and eventually was awarded a gold medal. But the IBA doubled down, saying Khelif – along with Taiwan's Lin Yu-thing – were disqualified from the world championships due to "a result of their failure to meet the eligibility criteria for participating in the women's competition, as set and laid out in the IBA Regulations. This decision, made after a meticulous review, was extremely important and necessary to uphold the level of fairness and utmost integrity of the competition." The IBA added that Khelif underwent two tests: one in 2022 and the other in 2023. The IBA said Khelif appealed the decision to the Court for Arbitration of Sport but withdrew during the process, making the "IBA decision legally binding." Throughout the controversy, Khelif has maintained that their gender is female. Khelif even filed a lawsuit against detractors and critics on social media. Before World Boxing made its decision, Khelif was planning on participating in the 2028 Olympics despite President Donald Trump's "No Men in Women's Sports" executive order – the 2028 games take place in Los Angeles. Khelif told ITV that the policies do not apply to the boxer. "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," Khelif told the outlet. "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." Follow Fox News Digital's sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
Daily Mail
6 days ago
- Health
- Daily Mail
Riley Gaines demands apology from Jemele Hill after leaked Imane Khelif report 'proves boxer is biological male'
Riley Gaines has called on ex-ESPN host Jemele Hill to apologize to a female boxer she said quit against Imane Khelif because she was 'gonna get her a** whooped' after a bombshell medical report claimed her opponent was a biological male. Khelif, who captured women's welterweight gold for Algeria at last year's Olympic Games, was embroiled in controversy once again last week when a 2023 medical test which allegedly indicates the fighter carries male chromosomes was leaked. The document, seen by 3 Wire Sports via Telegraph Sport, states: 'Chromosome analysis reveals male karyotype.' Last summer, a year after being thrown out of the World Championships for allegedly failing gender eligibility tests, Khelif stormed to gold in the French capital in highly contentious fashion. One of their opponents along the way, Italy's Angela Carini, infamously quit after just 46 seconds of their contest before refusing to shake Khelif's hand and breaking down in tears amid the question marks over their gender. Carini later admitted she wanted to apologize to Khelif after the International Olympic Committee defended their right to compete, saying a few weeks later: 'I was angry because my Olympics had gone up in smoke.' After a new report claiming Khelif is a biological male leaked last week, Gaines has told Hill to apologize for her post on X in 2024 At the time, Hill - who departed ESPN in 2018 after being suspended by the network for calling Donald Trump racist a year earlier - claimed on X that 'a lot of people need to apologize' to Khelif for questioning their gender. 'I hope Khelif sues some people over their reckless remarks,' she wrote alongside a screenshot of Carini's comments. 'All this story did was expose ugliness, hatred, and transphobia. As Carini admitted here, she quit because she was upset she was gonna get her a** whooped and other folks turned it into something else.' However, in light of the leaked medical report which alleges that Khelif did carry male chromosomes in 2023, Gaines has told Hill to issue her own apology to Carini. 'Hey @jemelehill,' the conservative political activist and former college swimmer posted. 'We'll be waiting for your apology to Angel Carini — a woman who was punched in the face by a male who intended to knock her unconscious while the world watched, then labeled a coward by people like you for standing up against it.' Amid the reignited gender dispute, Khelif broke cover in an Instagram post shared on Monday. Yet the sporting star refused to acknowledge the furor surrounding the alleged chromosome analysis and instead focused on their role as a Unicef ambassador. The post, celebrating Unicef's 'Global Day of Parents,' featured a photo of Khelif in a blue polo bearing the organization's logo as the boxer formed a heart with their hands. In the lengthy caption, Khelif paid tribute to her own parents for supporting and standing by her. 'Today, I became a champion, but it all started long ago,' she began. 'When my parents believed in me, even when the dream felt too big. When they supported me, listened to me, and stood by me. 'Being a parent isn't easy. There's no manual. But the love, patience, and trust you give your child can change everything. 'On this #GlobalDayOfParents, I just want to say thank you. Thank you to every parent who chooses, every single day, to be there for their children.
Fox News
02-06-2025
- Health
- Fox News
Gender controversy swirls around Olympic gold medalist after new report sheds light on medical tests
Olympic gold medalist boxer Imane Khelif was embroiled in another gender controversy over the weekend after World Boxing declared that the athlete would be unable to compete until a sex test was completed. 3 Wire Sports, citing medical documents from chromosome tests given by the International Boxing Association (IBA) before the 2022 and 2023 world championships, reported that Khelif's DNA showed "markers with male karyotypes." "Chromosome analysis reveals Male karyotype. No numerical or chromosomal anomalies detected at 450-550 banding resolution," a screenshot of the document on 3 Wire Sports read. The test was at an accredited lab in New Delhi, called Dr. Lal PathLabs, before the boxing championships. Fox News Digital reached out to World Boxing, the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the Algerian Olympic Committee and reps for Khelif for comment. Khelif was disqualified from the 2023 championships before a gold medal bout over gender eligibility issues. IBA President Umar Kremlev released a statement to Russia's TASS Agency about why Khelif was disqualified. "Based on DNA tests, we identified a number of athletes who tried to trick their colleagues into posing as women. According to the results of the tests, it was proved that they have XY chromosomes. Such athletes were excluded from competition," Kremlev said. The Algerian Olympic Committee said at the time that Khelif was disqualified for "medical reasons." Algerian media reported that Khelif was disqualified for high testosterone levels, according to Reuters. "There are some countries that did not want Algeria to win a gold medal," Khelif told Algerian Ennahar TV. "This is a conspiracy and a big conspiracy, and we will not be silent about it." Khelif was thrust into the global spotlight after qualifying for the Olympics, with the gender controversy coming to light. Khelif defeated Angela Carini in the initial fight during the Paris Olympics, but the IOC defended Khelif. "Everyone competing in the women's category is complying with the competition eligibility rules," said IOC spokesperson Mark Adams. "They are women in their passports, and it's stated that this is the case, that they are female." Then, the IBA doubled down, saying Khelif – along with Taiwan's Lin Yu-thing – were disqualified from the world championships due to "a result of their failure to meet the eligibility criteria for participating in the women's competition, as set and laid out in the IBA Regulations. This decision, made after a meticulous review, was extremely important and necessary to uphold the level of fairness and utmost integrity of the competition." The IBA added that Khelif underwent two tests: one in 2022 and the other in 2023. The IBA said Khelif appealed the decision to the Court for Arbitration of Sport but withdrew during the process, making the "IBA decision legally binding." As the controversy grew, Khelif kept on winning and eventually was awarded a gold medal. Throughout the entire controversy, Khelif has maintained that their gender is female. Khelif even filed a lawsuit against detractors and critics on social media. Before World Boxing made its decision, Khelif was planning on participating in the 2028 Olympics despite President Donald Trump's "No Men in Women's Sports" executive order was signed. Khelif told ITV that the policies do not apply to the boxer. "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," Khelif told the outlet. "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." World Boxing said last week that Khelif must take a sex test before being able to compete in sanctioned fights. "Imane Khelif may not participate in the female category at the Eindhoven Box Cup, 5-10 June 2025 and any World Boxing event until Imane Khelif undergoes genetic sex screening in accordance with World Boxing's rules and testing procedures," a letter sent by World Boxing to the Algerian Boxing Federation read. The letter also stated that World Boxing decided to adopt mandatory sex tests this month. "These new eligibility rules were developed with the express purpose of safeguarding athletes in combat sports, particularly given the physical risks associated with Olympic-style boxing," the letter read. World Boxing added in a statement that the new policies are "designed solely to ensure the health and safety of all participants in World Boxing competitions (including Imane Khelif) and is not deemed to in any way pre-judge the outcome of any testing that will be introduced as part of the new policy on 'Sex, Age and Weight.'" Follow Fox News Digital's sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
