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≡ WORLD BOXING SEX SCREENING ≡
The talk of the 2024 Olympic boxing competition was about the women’s 57 kg and 66 kg divisions, won by Yu-ting Lin (TPE) and Algerian Imane Khelif, both accused of being biological men.
On Thursday, both came out and said they are not retired and one is planning on competing at the first World Boxing Championships in Liverpool (GBR) in September and will take the now-required sex-test to compete in the women’s division.
Agence France Presse reported that Lin’s coach, Tzu-Chiang Tseng announced that she would comply with the new regulations:
“They announced that everyone must submit, so we will submit as well.
“If you want to compete you have to follow the rules of the competition. Since we are participating, we will go by their rules.”
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As for Khelif, a story from the French Nice Matin site quoted her manager Nasser Yesfah, that she was not boxing any more. On Thursday, Khelif slammed back in a Facebook post:
“I would like to make it clear to the public that the reports of my retirement from boxing are false. …
“I have never announced my retirement from boxing. I remain committed to my sporting career, I train regularly and I maintain my physical condition between Algeria and Qatar in preparation for upcoming events.”
As for Tesfah, Khelif stated, “This person no longer represents me in any way,” and that he “betrayed trust and country with his false and malicious statements.”
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Lin and Khelif both won world championship titles in event staged by the International Boxing Association (and its predecessor-in-name, AIBA) before the IBA disqualified them at its 2023 World Championships, citing ineligibility under its gender regulations, without specifics:
● Lin: World Champion 54 kg 2018; Worlds 57 kg bronze 2019; World Champion 57 kg 2022
● Khelif: Worlds 64 kg silver 2022
Both fought, without incident, at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, with Lin losing in the 57 kg round-of-16 and Khelif losing in the 60 kg quarterfinals. On Wednesday, World Boxing announced mandatory sex-testing for the women’s category, and for all boxers as of 1 January 2026:
“Under the policy, World Boxing will operate two categories as determined by sex: a men’s category and a women’s category. To be eligible for the men’s category, a competitor must be male at birth. To be eligible for the women’s category, a competitor must be female at birth.
“Participation in either category will be determined by a PCR or functional medical equivalent genetic screening test to determine sex at birth. The PCR test is a laboratory technique used to detect specific genetic material, in this case the SRY gene, which reveals the presence of the Y chromosome, that is an indicator of biological sex. The test can be conducted by nasal/mouth swab, saliva or blood.
“Athletes deemed to be male at birth, as evidenced by the presence of Y chromosome genetic material (the SRY gene) or with a difference of sexual development (DSD) where male androgenization occurs, will be eligible to compete in the male category.
“Athletes deemed to be female at birth, as evidenced by the presence of XX chromosomes or the absence of Y chromosome genetic material (the SRY gene) or with a DSD where male androgenization does not occur, will be eligible to compete in the female category.”
The World Boxing Championships in Liverpool are scheduled for 4-14 September.
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