A female boxer who was on a collision course with Imane Khelif has demanded that the Algerian reveals her DNA test results amid a huge row at the Olympic Games.
Australia’s Marissa Williamson was set to meet Khelif in the quarter finals of the women’s 66kg competition on Saturday, but failed to advance after losing to Anna Luca Hamori in Paris.
The Hungarian will instead face Khelif, whose brutal victory over Angela Carini into submission on Thursday has caused outrage among sports fans.
Italian star Carini withdrew from the bout inside the first 46 seconds after receiving two powerful punches from the Algerian, saying she had ‘never been hit so hard in my life’
Khelif was excluded from last year’s world championships after failing gender eligibility tests. However, the IOC have allowed the 66kg fighter to compete in Paris, much to the anger of the boxing community.
And Williamson has called for definitive clarity on the situation, before aiming her ire at the IOC.
‘Obviously, at the moment it’s just speculation,’ she told Nine after her defeat to Hamori.
‘Allegedly there has been DNA tests done that Imane is XY so if that’s the case then (firstly) come forward with that and own up to it and (secondly) the IOC should be stepping in because trying to make it fair for one person is making it unjust for so many more.’
Marissa Williamson has urged Imane Khelif to come clean with her DNA test results
The Aussie boxer was due to face the Algerian but lost her round of 16 fight in Paris
Carini was punched twice by Khelif in the opening round of their women’s welterweight bout in Paris.
The blows even appeared to knock off her chin strap, before she returned to the center of the ring and forfeited the bout, leading to Khelif being declared the winner.
The Italian boxer, who claimed before the fight that she could ‘only adapt to the rules of the Olympics’, was then seen crying in the ring as her defeat was confirmed.
The Olympics website acknowledges that Khelif was disqualified hours before a gold medal bout against China’s Yang Liu at the world championships after her elevated levels of testosterone failed to meet the eligibility criteria.
However, the Algerian Olympic Committee (COA) claims the disqualification was part of a ‘conspiracy’ to stop them from winning a gold medal while insisting ‘medical reasons’ were behind high testosterone levels.
Khelif’s inclusion in the 66kg division has caused uproar among sport fans
The International Boxing Association (IBA) released a statement on Wednesday, stating their decisions was made ‘after a meticulous review’.
Earlier in the day, current three-weight women’s boxing world champion Claressa Shields expressed her concern with Khelif competing at the Olympics.
Two-time Olympic gold medalist Claressa wrote on X: ‘So they got men fighting against women in the Olympics boxing ! I wouldn’t have stood for no stuff like that!
‘That is so heartbreaking to the women who have to have their dreams ruined by a man. Sad asf!’
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