Italian boxer Angela Carini stepped into the ring at the Summer Olympics on Thursday against an opponent who was banned from another international competition due to gender eligibility issues, and Carini gave up less than a minute in.
Carini’s first fight of the Paris Olympics was against Algeria’s Imane Khelif. After taking multiple punches to the face early in the first round, Carini raised her hand and withdrew from the bout 46 seconds in. She later refused a handshake from Khelif and was seen crying.
Angela #Carini abbandona il ring nel match contro Imane #Khelif
immagini @RaiDue #OlympicGames #Paris2024 #OlimpiadiParigi2024 #Olympic2024 pic.twitter.com/sLxmc8alBC
— Emei Markus (@EmeiMarkus) August 1, 2024
Khelif was disqualified hours before her gold medal fight at the 2023 World Championships in New Delhi after she failed gender eligibility tests. The International Boxing Association’s rules prevent athletes with XY chromosomes from competing in women’s events.
The IBA issued a statement on Wednesday saying the results of the tests Khelif was subjected to are confidential but “conclusively indicated” that Khelif “did not meet the required necessary eligibility criteria and (was) found to have competitive advantages over other female competitors.”
Carini could be heard yelling “this is unjust!” to her corner as she withdrew from the fight, according to Justin Terranova of the New York Post. She later told reporters in Italian that she has “never taken a punch like that” but stopped short of saying Khelif should not have been allowed to compete.
“I got into the ring to fight. But I didn’t feel like it anymore after the first minute. I started to feel a strong pain in my nose,” Carini said. “I didn’t give up, but a punch hurt too much and so I said enough. I’m leaving with my head held high.”
Renzini said Italian officials questioned Khelif’s eligibility before Thursday’s bout and encouraged Carini to not go through with the fight.
“Many people in Italy tried to call and tell her, ‘Don’t go please. It’s a man, it’s dangerous for you,'” Renzini said.
This year’s Olympic boxing competition is governed by the IOC’s Paris 2024 Boxing unit, which has more relaxed rules than other governing bodies. Another women’s boxer, Chinese Tapei’s Lin Yu‑ting, is also competing at the Olympics after being disqualified from the World Championships last year for the same reason as Khelif.
IOC spokesperson Mark Adams said Tuesday that all of the boxers in the women’s circuit in Paris have met eligibility requirements and “are women in their passports.”
