Not only the Algerian Olympic Committee, but also the Taiwanese Olympic Committee put serious legal measures in perspective.
The dispute surrounding boxers Imane Helif of Algeria and Lin Ju-ting of Taiwan continues: according to the news, the Olympic Committee of Algeria and Taiwan have threatened the International Boxing Association (IBA) with legal action if it publishes the test results that are the basis for their exclusion.
The relevant committees sent a letter warning them not to disclose the said information, citing, among other things, that it violates the protection of personal data, reports insidethegames.biz.
Lin and Helif also participated in the Tokyo Olympics three years ago, but they did not get the spotlight and neither of them won a medal. The situation is different now, Helif, who also defeated Luca Hámori, can fight for the gold medal in Paris on Friday, and Lin a day later.
Both were banned from last year's IBA world championships after failing gender tests.
However, they were able to start in Paris, as the IOC revoked the IBA's organizing authority and will conduct the women's boxing tournament at the Olympics according to its own rules.
Thomas Bach, the president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), is ready to listen to the experts after the scandals of the women's boxing tournament at the Paris Olympics, if - as he put it - the methods of determining and categorizing gender have improved.
We have two boxers who were born female, raised female, listed as female on their passports, and competed in the women's field for many years. This is clearly the definition of being a woman, said the president of the IOC.
“What we're seeing now is that some people want to own the definition of who a woman is. I would like to invite these experts and ask them to come up with a new scientific method of defining who is a woman, how women are born, how they grow up, and why someone who is listed as a woman on their passport is not considered a woman."
Bach also emphasized that if the experts come up with something, the IOC is ready to listen to them and investigate the cases,
but the organization he leads does not want to participate in a politically motivated cultural war. He added that he considers what is happening on social media on the subject, coupled with hate speech and aggression, unacceptable.
Cover photo: Algerian Imane Helif
Source: MTI/EPA/Jajha Arhab (cropped)
