- Imane Khelif had her first bout of the Olympics on Thursday morning
- The 25-year-old was rejected from the World Championships last year
- She has been cleared to compete here and forced her opponent to quit
Footage has emerged of Algerian boxer Imane Khelif landing a huge right hand on her opponent that forced the Italian to quit after just 46 seconds of their Olympic bout on Thursday morning.
Khelif, 25, has been cleared to compete in Paris despite being rejected from last year’s World Championships due to having high levels of testosterone.
She took on Italy’s Angela Carini in her opening Olympic bout on Thursday, and immediately went on the front foot as she nailed Carini with a massive punch that sent her across the ring.
Carini stayed on her feet but it was a clean shot that landed right on the chin, and just moments later she walked to her corner before telling them ‘it hurt like hell’.
After consulting with her corner, Carini opted to abandon the welterweight contest and Khelif was declared the winner.
Imane Khelif (left) landed a huge right hand on her Italian opponent Angela Carini (right)
Carini walked to her corner moments later and told them ‘it hurt like hell’
Carini’s corner informed the referee that she would not be continuing in the bout
Khelif (right) was declared the winner of the bout and advances to the next round
Carini was left in tears after her loss, and told reporters: ‘I went into the ring to fight. I didn’t give up, but a punch hurt too much and so I said enough. I’m leaving with my head held high’.
Khelif’s involvement at the Olympics has sparked controversy after she was disqualified from the World Championships in New Delhi in 2023.
The Olympics website noted that Khelif had been disqualified hours before a gold medal bout against China’s Yang Liu in New Delhi after her elevated levels of testosterone failed to meet the eligibility criteria.
The Algerian Olympic Committee (COA) hit back by claiming the disqualification was part of a ‘conspiracy’ to stop them from winning a gold medal and said ‘medical reasons’ were behind high testosterone levels.
Lin Yu-Ting of Taiwan was also disqualified from the World Championships.
According to feminist website Reduxx, both are thought both are impacted by a Difference of Sexual Development (DSD), a series of medical conditions identified at birth where genitalia is atypical in relation to chromosomes.
The International Boxing Association (IBA) released a statement on Wednesday, stating their decisions were made ‘after a meticulous review’.
The IBA stated that neither athlete underwent testosterone exams, but were instead ‘subject to a separate and recognised test’ which were held at their World Championships in 2022 and 2023.
Taiwan’s Ling Yu-Ting (pictured) has been cleared to compete, despite also being disqualified from last year’s World Championships
It is claimed the tests ‘conclusively indicated that both athletes did not meet the required necessary eligibility criteria’, with both boxers ‘found to have competitive advantages over other female competitors.’
The IBA hit out at the IOC, stating its differing regulations ‘raise serious questions about both competitive fairness and athletes’ safety.’
The IBA are not responsible for the Olympic competition having been stripped of recognition by the IOC amid ongoing governance issues – with the organisation establishing the Paris 2024 Boxing Unit to run the event.
The Boxing Unit has approved both boxers’ participation under rules in place for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, which are less strict than the IBA’s.
Khelif and Lin Yu-Ting competed in Tokyo, with both losing in the early rounds of their respective events.
