Paris 2024: Sympathy for Imane Khelif at Olympic village | ABS-CBN News

Boxer Imane Khelif, who has sparked a gender debate at the Paris Olympics, received plenty of sympathy at the Olympic village on Saturday (August 3).
Speaking before Khelif won her 57kg quarter final against Hungary's Anna Luca Hamori, a fellow athlete and coach stuck up for her after many people claimed she should not be fighting in Paris.
Khelif, who failed a gender eligibility test at the International Boxing Association (IBA) World Championships last year, was allowed to participate in the games by the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
And when she beat Italian Angela Carini inside 46 seconds on Thursday it sparked a debate both at the Olympics and on social media over whether she had an unfair advantage.
Majdouline El Allaoui, a sculling athlete from Morocco and also of African descent, said far from wanting her banned, Khelif was in fact an inspiration for women from Africa and the Arab world, adding that she would be supporting her.
"If you are jealous of her or something, you need to train like her,” El Allaoui added.
Khelif's disqualification from the IBA World Championships last year came just hours before her gold-medal bout in New Delhi. The IBA's eligibility rules prevent athletes with XY chromosomes from competing in women's events.
However, the IBA was stripped of its status as the global governing body for boxing by the IOC last year over governance issues, leaving the IOC to manage the boxing competition at the Paris Games.
The IOC maintains that inclusion should be the default, and athletes should only be excluded from women's competition if there are clear fairness or safety issues. They have defended their decision to allow Khelif to compete.
Xia Zhen, a 27-year-old resident of Saint-Denis, expressed his confusion over the controversy, believing it was normal for one athlete to be physically stronger than another.
"Many people may confuse transgender issues with gender disputes,” said Xia, noting that Khelif is not transgender.
(Production: Anna Voitenko, Joyce Zhou)

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