With the onset of Paris Olympics 2024, last week, several controversies are surfacing over the internet.  The latest to add to the row is where an Italian boxer named Angela Carini abandoned her bout against the Algerian opponent, Imane Khelif, with in few seconds of entering the boxing round.  

Notably, the Italian Amateur boxer, Angela boxer came to the Paris Olympics this year, aiming to win a medal as an honor for her late father and coach, who died shortly after she participated in the Summer Olympics in Tokyo in 2020. 

Recently, Carini’s performance made headlines around the world, when she withdrew to compete against her opponent Imane Khelif— an Algerian boxer after staying only 46 seconds in the boxing ring and decided to retire, citing severe pain from Khelif’s punches, with a spot of blood on her trunks 

Carini’s quick defeat turns Controversy 

Surprisingly, this quick defeat aroused many questions on the table and sparked a broader debate about Khelif’s eligibility to compete, as she was disqualified previously from a gender eligibility test in 2023 World Championships held in Budapest.  

Carini didn’t shake Khelif’s hand after the match. Although she later apologized and made a statement, explaining that her moves were not meant to be political and felt sorry for her opponent Khelif. 

“All this controversy certainly made me sad, and I also felt sorry for my opponent, she had nothing to do with it and like me was only here to fight,” said Carini. 

Further, she also claimed that her actions were not intentional and was sorry to Khelif and everyone. She said that she was angry as she had already lost her match. “I have nothing against Khelif and on the contrary if I happened to meet her again, I would give her a hug,” Carini added. 

IOC issues Press Release 

Additionally, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and Paris 2024 Boxing Unit also issued a joint press release, mentioning that all athletes participating in the boxing tournament of the Paris Olympic games 2024 comply with all the eligibility and entry terms and conditions. 

As per the issued press release, with previous boxing Olympic competitions, the gender and the age of the athletes are based on their passport. It also notes that the athletes have been competing in international boxing matches for many years in the women’s category. These include the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, International Boxing Association (IBA) and World Championships, IBA-sanctioned tournaments.