Forty-six seconds of a boxing match was all the world needed to sidetrack the 2024 Olympics into a heated controversy about the gender of two women in the field: Imane Khelif of Algeria and Lin Yu-ting of Taiwan.
That bout, which ended when Angela Carini of Italy quit against Khelif, spawned intense interest in numerous questions, some of which have clear answers and some of which don’t. The subjects include questions about the women themselves, philosophical queries about how sports approach gender and practical questions about how boxing tournaments and the Olympics are run.
Here’s what we know and a large caveat: Some elements of the situation are unclear or unknowable.
Who is Imane Khelif?
Khelif, 25, is competing at the Paris Games in the 66-kilogram (145-pound) division and has clinched at least a bronze medal. She finished in fifth place in the 60-kilogram (132-pound) division at the Tokyo Games.
She is 39-9, including one professional bout. She has notable past losses in the 2021 Olympic quarterfinals and in the 2022 world championship finals. Khelif won silver at the 2022 world championships and gold medals at the 2022 African championships, 2022 Mediterranean Games and 2023 Arab Games.
Imane Khelif prior to her match against Hungary’s Anna Luca…
