A boxing match that lasted 46 seconds has dominated the conversation around the Paris Olympics in recent days and reignited the debate about who is eligible to compete in women’s sports.
Algerian boxer Imane Khelif advanced to the quarterfinals of the 66-kilogram (145.5-pound) division on Thursday when Italy’s Angela Carini withdrew after being struck in the face by Khelif.
“I felt a severe pain in my nose, and with the maturity of a boxer, I said, ‘Enough,’ because I didn’t want to, I didn’t want to, I couldn’t finish the match,” Carini said.
The Italian said she did not abandon the fight to make a political statement.
“I am not here to judge or pass judgment,” Carini said. “If an athlete is this way, and in that sense it’s not right or it is right, it’s not up to me to decide.”
Some people near and far from the ring felt otherwise. Commentators on sports shows and celebrities on social media criticized the inclusion of Khelif, referring to her as a “biological male” and, in some cases, as a “man.”
In 2023, Khelif, along with an Olympic boxer from Taiwan, had been disqualified from the International Boxing Association World Championships. The…
