Imane Khelif is set to win at least a bronze medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics after defeating Hungary’s Anna Luca Hamori on Saturday. The Algerian handled business in the ring with a 5:0 unanimous decision at welterweight. Khelif has been the subject of gender debate and online abuse after her first opponent at the Games conceded the fight just 46 seconds in once Khelif landed a clean right hand.
The scrutiny tracks back to a 2023 decision by the IBA to disqualify Khelif and Taiwan’s Lin Yu-Ting for failing a “gender test.” The organization, which said on Saturday that it intends to award Angela Carini, Khelif’s first opponent, $50,000 after the reaction to the result.
“I do not understand why they killed women’s boxing,” IBA president Umar Kremlev said. “Only eligible athletes should compete in the ring for the sake of safety. I could not look at her tears.”
Neither Khelif or Yu-Ting have been disqualified from a competition despite the IBA’s claim that their test revealed an XY chromosome.
Before Saturday’s fight took place, Hungary’s boxing body notified the IOC that it planned to protest Khelif’s inclusion in the Olympics.
Khelif will face Janjeem Suwannapheng of Thailand in the semifinals on Tuesday at Roland Garros.
