Algerian Boxer Imane Khelif Declares ‘I Am A Female’ After Italian Boxer Angela Carini Apologizes For Seemingly Questioning Her Gender At Paris Olympics

Algerian boxer Imane Khelif has declared herself that she is in fact “a female” after Italian boxer Angela Carini apologized after seemingly questioning her gender at their Paris Olympics bout.

RELATED : Paris Olympics: Italy’s Angela Carini Forfeits Match Against Algeria’s Imane Khelif, Who Failed Gender Test

As we previously shared, on Thursday (August 1), Carini, 25, forfeited the match against Khelif, 25, claiming the Algerian boxer landed a super heavy punch, of two thrown, that caused her to quit after 46 seconds of the opening round of their welterweight bout.

After Khelif was dubbed the winner, Carini fell to her knees in tears and told her coach, “It’s not right, it’s not right!” It was reported that Carini suffered a suspected broken nose, later telling reporters she had never been punched so hard in her career.

The incident has since caused headlines to resurface about Khelif failing a gender eligibility test before competing at the Paris Olympics 2024. Last year, Khelif was disqualified hours before her gold-medal bout at the women’s World Championships in New Delhi. She had filed to meet the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) eligibility criteria, which prevents athletes with male XY chromosomes from competing in women’s events.

RELATED : Boxer Who Defeated Imane Khelif In 2022 World Championship Defends Her Amid Olympics Controversy

Despite last year’s incident, the IOC still allowed the boxer to compete this year and even defended its decision after Carini’s comments. The IOC stated, “The current aggression against these two athletes is based entirely on this arbitrary decision, which was taken without any proper procedure, especially considering that these athletes had been competing in top-level competition for many years. The IOC is saddened by the abuse that the two athletes are currently receiving. Every person has the right to practice sport without discrimination.”

After forfeiting and causing controversy over Imane Khelief’s gender, Angela Carini ended up apologizing to her for the harassment she’s since been dealing with. On Friday (August 2), Italian publication Gazzetta dello Sport reported that Carini told them, “All this controversy makes me sad. I’m sorry for my opponent, too. If the IOC said she can fight, I respect that decision. It wasn’t something I intended to do [by not shaking hands]. Actually, I want to apologize to her and everyone else. I was angry because my Olympics had gone up in smoke. [I would] embrace her [if I met her again].”

Despite all of the drama surrounding her gender, Imane Khelif isn’t backing down and on Saturday (August 3), she won her match against Hungarian boxer Anna Luca Hamori and later told reporters , “I want to tell the entire world that I am a female, and I will remain a female.” Holding back tears with an Algerian flag around her back, she added, “I dedicate this medal to the world, and to all the Arabs, and I tell you, ‘Long live Algeria!’”

RELATED : Paris Olympics Officials Apologize For ‘Last Supper’ Parody At Opening Ceremony: ‘There Was Never An Intention To Show Disrespect To Any Religious Group’

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