In the women's boxing event at the Paris Olympics, Italy's Angela Kearney refused to fight Algerian boxer Imane Khalif after just 46 seconds of the first round.
Italian boxer Angela Cairni said it was unfair because she thought the Algerian rival did not meet the criteria of being a female boxer.
After the objection of the Italian female boxer, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) issued a statement in favor of the boxer Iman Khalif and criticized the IOC's suspension of the International Boxing Association (IBA).
According to the IOC, the two boxers participating in the Olympics are being criticized based on misleading reports that all boxers participating in women's boxing meet the eligibility criteria.
According to the IOC, the same rules of boxing are in force at the Paris Olympics as they were in 2021, with all qualifying rounds of Olympic boxing held under the same rules.
The IOC said that two boxers, including Iman Khalif, were suspended by the IBA last year without any procedure.
According to the IOC, Iman Khalif and Lin Yu Ting were suddenly and arbitrarily kicked out of women's boxing, the IBA meeting minutes also make it clear that there was no procedure.
The IOC said that it was clear in the IBA meeting that the decision to exclude the two boxers from the World Championship was their own.
It should be noted that the International Olympic Committee suspended the IBA in 2019 and dismissed it in 2023.
