Julius OkorieAhead of their Saturday’s bout at the Olympics, controversial boxer, Imane Khelif’s next opponent ,Anna Luca Hamori, says she is not worried whether her opponent is a he or she as she is ready to fight to the finish.
Khelif needed just 46 seconds to see off Italy’s Angela Carini after she quit amid a gender eligibility storm. Carini claimed she had never been hit so hard with the Algerian previously failing to meet, eligibility criteria.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelBut Hungarian Hamori insists she is prepared to upset the odds when she enters the ring.
She told reporters: “I’m not scared. I don’t care about the press story and social media. If she or he is a man, it will be a bigger victory for me if I win.”
Meanwhile, IOC Spokesman, Mark Adams, said Tuesday: “Everyone competing in the women’s category is complying with the competition eligibility rules. They are women in their passports and it’s stated that this is the case, that they are female.”
It was later reported that Khelif is a biological woman who suffers from a rare condition categorised under differences in sex development (DSD) or intersex conditions. DSD or intersex cases can result in female individuals having male chromosomes or anatomy.
READ ALSO: Controversial Boxer Khelif Wins, As Opponent Quits In Seconds
Taiwan’s Lin Yu-ting, who was stripped of a bronze medal at last year’s World Championships after failing a gender eligibility test, fights in Paris on Friday as the pair’s involvement continues to divide opinion. The 2023 World Championships, from which Khelif and Lin were disqualified, were organised by the International Boxing Association (IBA).
On Wednesday, the IBA said the pair were disqualified at the World Championships “to uphold the level of fairness and utmost integrity of the competition.”
Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, told Italian media: “It matters to be able to compete on equal grounds and, from my point of view, it was not an even contest.”
Julius Okorie is Chief Sports and Entertainment Correspondent for Prime Business Africa. He began his journalism career with the Champion Newspaper and Sporting Champion and later moved on to Daily Independent and the Nation Newspapers. Okorie joined Prime Business Africa in 2024 bringing on board 20 years of experience in writing investigative news on Sports and Entertainment. His well researched and highly informative articles on Sports Business and general entertainment are followed by a wide range of audience.
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