Women are fighting back against this Olympian travesty

What’s the point of watching the women’s boxing at the Paris Olympics? As it stands, a male is likely to win gold in two out of the six women’s weight classes. That’s right, the International Olympics Committee (IOC) has allowed two athletes with XY chromosomes to take part in a competition that’s meant to be solely for people with XX chromosomes.

Algeria’s Imane Khelif, competing as a welterweight, will go for gold in the Olympic final on Friday evening, while Taiwan’s Lin Yu-ting will compete in the featherweight final on Saturday. This is despite the fact that both failed the International Boxing Association’s sex eligibility test 14 months ago. As the IBA stated at the time, independent tests ‘concluded [that] the boxer’s DNA was that of a male consisting of XY chromosomes’. The IBA therefore excluded both Khelif and Lin from its competitions in order to protect ‘the safety of our boxers and the integrity of the competitions results’.

The eligibility tests likely indicate that both suffer from a disorder of sex development (DSD). This might mean that they were born with abnormal genitalia, or that they were believed to be girls at birth and were raised as such. Regardless of the specifics, thanks to their chromosomes, their lives will have changed dramatically when they reached puberty. At that point, testosterone will have surged through their bodies. That is the source of their physical advantage.

The IOC is incredibly strict about compliance with the rules in other areas. It has already disqualified Indian wrestler Vinesh Phogat moments before her battle for gold after she weighed in a mere 100g over the established weight limit. Yet when it comes to sex eligibility, the IOC is considerably more lax. It cannot even be bothered to do a cheek-swab test to confirm whether or not someone who has gone through male puberty is competing in the women’s sports categories.

This is a spectacular blind spot. Male puberty confers clear physical advantages on an individual. Little wonder Khelif and Lin have so far seen off the best and the strongest female boxers from around the world with relative ease. Indeed, Khelif’s first match against Italy’s Angela Carini lasted just 46 seconds.

Boxing is an incredibly aggressive contact sport. The objective is to use one’s strength and punching power to knock down an opponent. Everyone stepping into the ring knows the risks involved. But those women talented enough to box at an Olympics have only consented to take those risks in the context of a women-only competition. They have not devoted years of their lives to the sport only to become the punch-bags of biological males.

No one could blame women Olympians if they had decided to keep quiet so as not to incur the wrath of the IOC. But several have bravely decided to speak out against the deep unfairness of women having to box competitors enjoying the advantages of male puberty. Italy’s Carini said ‘non è giusto’ (‘it’s not fair’) during her defeat to Khelif. Bulgaria’s Svetlana Staneva and Turkey’s Esra Yildiz Kahraman made double XX signs with their hands in protest after their defeats to Lin. Beyond the boxing ring, Chinese sprinter Lin Yuwei made a similar XX gesture ahead of her 100-metre race.

Their collective refusal to bow down to the misogynist rulings of the IOC ought to inspire us all. They have struck a blow far more powerful than any Khelif or Lin have been able to land in the ring. They have taken a vital stand against gender ideology, and the demand that women acquiesce to its demands.

Supporters of gender ideology have responded to the Olympics boxing scandal by trying to bamboozle the public with something close to disinformation. They claim that genetics and biology are too complex for a layperson to understand. They say that the IOC has its own perfectly thorough eligibility criteria, which is basically a passport test. Khelif and Lin have female passports, so the IOC argues, and that’s enough to conclude once and for all that they’re female.

Of course, as the IBA’s tests show, a passport is not enough. By ignoring the fact that both Khelif and Lin have XY chromosomes, that both have benefited from male puberty, the IOC is legitimising the spectacle of male violence against women.

The female athletes putting their bodies on the line in pursuit of Olympic glory do not need saving or pity. They simply need their voices to be heard. They are fighting for the rights of all women and girls. They are saying loudly and defiantly that biological males have no place in women’s sport.

Raquel Rosario Sanchez is a writer, campaigner and researcher from the Dominican Republic.