Paris Olympics: Italian boxer Carini quits 45 seconds into bout against Algerian Khelif who failed sex test, sparks controversy

Algerian boxer Imane Khelif wiped out Italy’s Angela Carini 46 seconds into their Paris Olympics 2024 women’s welterweight Round of 16 in the opening round on Thursday.

Struck early by a fierce blow from Khelif’s left hand amidts a barrage of jabs, Carini clutched her nose in pain before opting to withdraw from the bout. 35 seconds into the fight, Carini moved to towards her coach at the ropes to fix her headgear. She briefly resuming the fight but returned to her corner and stopped and quickly left the ring.

As the referee raised Khelif’s hand to pronounce the winner, Carini fell to her knees and was seen to be in tears.

Carini said that she abandoned the bout because she had never been punched so hard. “I have always honoured my country with loyalty. This time I didn’t succeed because I couldn’t fight anymore. I put an end to the match because after the second blow, after years of experience in the ring and a life of fighting, I felt a strong pain in my nose. I said ‘that’s enough’ because … I could not bring the match to an end. So I thought, maybe it’s better to put an end to the match,” Carini said.

Imane Khelif (R) and Angela Carini (L) react after their fight. REUTERS/Isabel Infantes

The 25-year-old Khelif has been in the spotlight since being disqualified before a gold medal match at the 2023 World Championships for failing International Boxing Association (IBA) eligibility rules that stop athletes with XY chromosomes competing in women’s events.

This was Imane Khelif fighting in Mexico in December 2022 against a Mexican woman.

Three months later, a test apparently revealed the XY chromosome.

Note the force of the punching.

Imane’s opponent that day, @BriandaTamara, said she certainly did:#OlympicGames #Boxing https://t.co/NvltUigCbT pic.twitter.com/8PhfGzJO2F

— teresa smith (@treesey) July 29, 2024

She was ruled eligible, however, to compete in Paris, a competition run by the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

Some sports have limited the levels of testosterone allowed for athletes competing in women’s competition, while others ban everyone who has been through male puberty.

Taiwan’s double world champion Lin Yu-ting also lost her bronze medal at last year’s world championships after she failed to meet the criteria. Lin will face Uzbekistan’s Sitora Turdibekova in a featherweight bout in Paris on Friday.

– With Reuters inputs

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