Who are Imane Khelif and Lin Yu-ting caught in the Paris Olympics gender controversy?

It took just 46 seconds of a boxing match to plunge the 2024 Paris Olympics into a controversy that has raged on. Two wincing blows from Imane Khelif of Algeria ended the 66kg category bout after Angela Carini of Italy broke down in tears and quit, raising numerous questions. The women’s boxing row at the North Paris Arena engulfed Lin Yu-ting of Taiwan, who is also in the eye of the gender storm.

Khelif put the controversy behind her and marched into the final. Lin too refused to be weighed down by the row. The Taiwanese fighter entered the 57kg final, which ensured her at least a silver medal.

Here’s a look at the Olympic controversy that has refused to die.

What’s the controversy over Imane Khelif and Lin Yu-ting?

Khelif and Lin won boxing medals at the world championships in New Delhi last year, but the International Boxing Association (IBA), the governing body, disqualified them, saying they failed gender eligibility tests.

Khelif was banned just hours before the welterweight final after “her elevated levels of testosterone failed to meet the eligibility criteria”. Lin won the bronze, but the IBA stripped her of the medal after “a biochemical test found high testosterone levels or chromosomal variance”.

Both are not transgender and have competed in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. The International Olympic Committee spokesman Mark Adams said the 2023 disqualifications were the result “of a sudden and arbitrary decision by the IBA.”

What did the boxing association say?

The association said in a statement: “The athletes did not undergo a testosterone examination but were subject to a separate and recognised test, whereby the specifics remain confidential. This test conclusively indicated that both athletes did not meet the required eligibility criteria and were found to have competitive advantages over other female competitors.”

What did the boxing association president say?

IBA President Umar Kremlev accused the boxers of trying to deceive their competition by pretending to be women. His assertion that the tests showed elevated testosterone in the boxers contradicted IBA’s statement that “the athletes did not undergo a testosterone examination”, a BBC report said.

After the 2023 world championship disqualifications, Kremlev told Russia’s Tass news agency that Khelif and Lin had X and Y chromosomes. Based on DNA tests, “it was proven that they have XY chromosomes”, he said.

What’s the IBA medical panel’s view?

Former IBA medical committee chairman Ioannis Filippatos said blood tests in 2022 had revealed abnormalities in both boxers. Further tests in 2023 confirmed these findings, leading to their disqualification, IBA said.

“The medical result, the blood result, looks — and the laboratory says — that this boxer is male. The problem is that we have two blood exams with a male karyotype. This is the answer from the laboratory,” AFP quoted Filippatos as saying. A karyotype is an individual’s complete set of chromosomes.

Do chromosomes decide the gender?

“The Y chromosome is most commonly associated with male individuals, but the Y chromosome does not singularly define a person’s sex,” a BBC report said, quoting the UK’s National Institutes of Health.

According to the National Health Service in England, the presence of X and Y chromosomes in women can only be determined with chromosomal testing, usually an ultrasound or a blood test, the report added.

Did Khelif and Lin undergo chromosomal testing?

The IBA has not disclosed the nature of the tests. So it’s not clear whether Khelif or Lin underwent such testing.

What does the IOC say about Khelif’s eligibility?

IOC officials say the Games rely on passports, other official national documentation, and medical clearances to distinguish men’s and women’s divisions in sports events. Some sports have additional requirements.

Adams said that Khelif is shown as a female on her birth certificate, and her passport and legal documents identify her as a woman. “This is not a transgender case. Scientifically, this is not a man fighting a woman,” the IOC spokesman added.

What’s the IOC’s stance on Lin?

IOC officials insist Lin has met every benchmark to fight in a women’s division.

Lin is registered as female on her birth certificate, Cho Kuan-ting, a city council member in New Taipei, told the Taipei Times. “The test result from last year was not even about chromosomes,” Cho added.

Why is the boxing association at odds with Olympic officials?

The International Olympic Council supervises the boxing events in Paris after the IBA was banned from running the Olympic tournaments in 2019. Several disputes have occurred, including allegations of unfair judging and a lack of financial transparency.

The IOC and IBA have been at loggerheads after the boxing association lost its challenge in the Court of Arbitration for Sport. That has spilled into the gender eligibility row too.

Will Khelif and Lin be disqualified from the Olympics?

Unlikely. Both are assured of medals. They could even win the gold. The IOC released a statement saying all boxers have complied with the eligibility and entry regulations. That settles it.