Olympic boxing: Lin Yu-ting wins gold amid gender eligibility row

Lin and Khelif were banned last year by the International Boxing Association (IBA) who said the pair “failed to meet the eligibility criteria for participating in the women’s competition, as set and laid out in the IBA regulations”.

But the International Olympic Committee (IOC), which runs the boxing events at the Olympics, allowed them to compete, insisting Khelif and Lin were “born and raised as women”, and has strongly criticized the IBA.

The IOC had previously suspended the Russia-led organization over concerns around governance and regulation and has raised doubts about the tests.

The row erupted after Khelif’s first bout in which Italian Angela Carini abandoned after 46 seconds, saying afterwards she had to “preserve” her life.

As Lin and Khelif progressed with comfortable victories in the ring, a chaotic news conference held by the IBA last week did little to clear the confusion around their bans.

Chief executive Chris Roberts said the pair had “chromosome tests”, while president Umar Kremlev appeared to suggest the tests determined the fighters’ testosterone levels.

The IOC, which has run the boxing events at the Olympics since suspending the IBA, said competitors were eligible for the women’s division if their passports said they were female and has backed the pair throughout.

There has been apparent criticism from Lin and Khelif’s fellow competitors, however.

Two of Lin’s opponents made ‘X’ gestures – said to be intended to represent female chromosomes – in the ring after defeat although Yang Liu, who Khelif beat on Friday night to secure her victory, raised the Algerian’s arm in celebration after the bell.

Lin and Szeremeta’s bout seemed to be fought in good spirits. The Pole made a heart shape with her hands in the direction of the crowd before leaving the ring.