Olympic hurdling champion Sally Pearson has weighed in on the gender storm that has erupted at the 2024 Games, saying athletes “expect and trust that we compete on a level playing field”.
Algerian athlete Imane Khelif won her 66kg boxing bout over Angela Carini less than a minute into Thursday’s contest, with the Italian throwing in the towel and saying post-fight that she needed to “safeguard my life”.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) allowed Khelif, 25, and Taiwan boxer Lin Yu-ting, 28, to compete against women in Paris despite the pair failing gender eligibility tests for last year’s world championships.
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Pearson — a hurdling world champion and Olympic gold medalist — said athletes trusted the IOC to protect the sports and athletes competing in them.
“We expect and trust that we compete on a level playing field and that everyone is treated fairly,” Pearson said.
“There will be some who think they’re above the rules and we hope that they will be held accountable and not go undetected.”
Pearson reiterated comments made by 22-year-old Australian boxer Marissa Williamson Pohlman, who said attempts to make it fair for one athlete was “making it unjust for so many more”.
“It’s an interesting time and I don’t know what the answer is but hopefully one day we can be fully inclusive so that everyone has a chance to play sport,” Pearson said.
The IOC is under pressure to ban XY-chromosome athletes from competing against women, but spokesperson Mark Adams said athletes taking part were “complying with competition eligibility rules”.
“I hope we’re all agreed that we’re not calling for people to go back to the bad old days of sex testing, which was a terrible thing to do,” Adams said.
Williamson recently fought and lost to Khelif at the Eindhoven Cup, but there was no immediate rematch after the Australian fell to defeat on Thursday.
The Algerian will instead meet Hungarian Anna Luca Hamori in a Saturday quarter-final.
“I’m not scared. I don’t care about the story … if she or he is a man it’ll be a bigger victory for me if I will win. So let’s do it,” Hamori said
Khelif dodged media as she exited the arena following her win, while Carini fought through tears to explain it was the injury and not a protest, that forced her sudden abandonment.
“I felt a strong pain in my nose and … could no longer finish the match,” she said.
“I am heartbroken because I am a fighter, my father taught me to be a warrior.
“I felt all the controversy that there has been … that was not something that stopped me or blocked me mentally.”
The Algerian Olympic Committee issued a statement on Wednesday condemning what they termed “lies” and “unethical targeting and maligning of our esteemed athlete, Imane Khelif, with baseless propaganda from certain foreign media outlets.”
– With AAP