On Thursday, one of the two athletes, the Algerian Imani Kelif, defeated her opponent in just 46 seconds, with the Italian Angela Carini leaving the ring in tears.
The IOC defends its decision to allow women’s participation while criticizing the IBA’s decision to exclude them, stating that it was made practically without the approval of administrative bodies.
It further explains that “we have seen misleading information in publications regarding the two athletes” and concludes by saying that “today’s aggression against the two athletes is entirely based on this arbitrary decision, which was made without any proper process.”
What the IOC statement says:
Every individual has the right to participate in sports without discrimination.
All athletes participating in the Olympic boxing tournament comply with the eligibility and participation rules, as well as with all applicable medical regulations established by the Paris 2024 Boxing Unit (PBU). As in previous Olympic boxing tournaments, the gender and age of the athletes are based on their passports.
These rules were also applied during the qualification period, including the boxing tournaments of the 2023 European Games, the Asian Games, the Pan American Games, and the Pacific Games, as well as the ad hoc African qualifying tournament of 2023 in Dakar (SEN) and the two world qualifying tournaments held in Busto Arsizio (ITA) and Bangkok (THA) in 2024, which involved a total of 1,471 different boxers from 172 National Olympic Committees (NOCs), the Refugee Boxing Team, and individual neutral athletes, including over 2,000 qualifying matches.
The PBU used the boxing rules of Tokyo 2020 as a basis to develop its regulations for Paris 2024. This was done to minimize the impact on the athletes’ preparations and to ensure consistency across the Olympic Games. The Tokyo 2020 rules were based on the rules set after Rio 2016, which were in place before the suspension imposed on the IBA by the IOC in 2019 and the subsequent revocation of its recognition in 2023.
We have seen misleading information in publications regarding the two athletes who will compete in the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. The two athletes have been competing for many years in international boxing in the women’s category, including at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, the World Championships of the International Boxing Association (IBA), and in IBA-approved tournaments.
These two athletes fell victim to a sudden and arbitrary decision by the IBA. Towards the end of the IBA World Championship in 2023, they were suddenly excluded without any due process.
According to the IBA minutes available on its website, this decision was initially made exclusively by the Secretary General and the CEO of the IBA. The IBA Board only ratified it afterward and only then requested that a process be established to be followed in similar cases in the future and reflected in IBA regulations. The minutes also state that the IBA must “establish a clear procedure regarding gender verification.”
Today’s aggression against these two athletes is entirely based on this arbitrary decision, which was made without any proper process – especially considering that these athletes have been competing in high-level matches for many years.
This approach is contrary to good governance.
Eligibility rules should not change while the competition is ongoing, and any rule change must follow appropriate procedures and be based on scientific evidence.
The IOC is committed to protecting the human rights of all athletes participating in the Olympic Games in accordance with the Olympic Charter, the IOC Code of Ethics, and the IOC’s Strategic Framework on Human Rights. The IOC expresses its sadness over the abuse currently faced by the two athletes.
The recognition of the IBA was revoked by the IOC in 2023 after its suspension in 2019. The revocation of recognition was confirmed by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
The IOC has made it clear that national boxing federations need to reach consensus around a new international federation for boxing to be included in the sports program for the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.
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