Algerian boxer Imane Khelif clinches medal at Paris Olympics after gender outcry
Villepinte (France), Aug 3: Boxer Imane Khelif of Algeria clinched a medal at the Paris Olympics in an emotional fight Saturday that followed days of sharp scrutiny and online abuse as misconceptions about her gender have exploded into a larger clash about identity in sports.
Khelif defeated Anna Luca Hamori of Hungary 5:0 in the quarterfinals of the women's 66-kilogram bout. Khelif will win at least a bronze medal after defeating Hamori for the second victory of her tumultuous second trip to the Olympics. Hungary's boxing association said it planned to contest the matchup with the International Olympic Committee but still let the fight go ahead.
Khelif faced outcry after the banned International Boxing Association claimed she failed an unspecified eligibility test to compete last year over elevated levels of testosterone. She won her opening bout at the Paris Games on Thursday when opponent Angela Carini of Italy tearfully abandoned the fight after just 46 seconds.
The unusual ending became a sharp wedge to drive into an already prominent divide over gender identity and regulations in sports, drawing comments from the likes of former U.S. President Donald Trump, “Harry Potter” writer J.K. Rowling and others falsely claiming Khelif was a man or transgender.
At a Paris Games that has championed inclusion and seen other outcry over an opening ceremony performance featuring drag queens, LGBTQ+ groups say the hateful comments could pose dangers to their community and female athletes.
Khelif's win was emotional — she went to the center of the ring, waved to her fans, knelt and slammed her palm on the canvas, her a smile turning to tears. She left the ring to hug her coaches while her fans roared, weeping during their embrace and as she walked out.
IOC President Thomas Bach on Saturday defended Khelif and fellow boxer Lin Yu-ting of Taiwan. Khelif and Lin were disqualified in the middle of last year's world championships by the IBA, the former governing body of Olympic boxing after what it claimed were failed eligibility tests.
Both had competed in IBA events for several years without problems, and the Russian-dominated body — which has faced years of clashes with the IOC over judging scandals, leadership decisions and financial issues — has refused to provide any information about the tests, underscoring its lack of transparency in nearly every aspect of its dealings, particularly in recent years.
“Let's be very clear here: We are talking about women's boxing,” Bach said Saturday. “We have two boxers who are born as a woman, who have been raised a woman, who have a passport as a woman, and who have competed for many years as women. And this is the clear definition of a woman. There was never any doubt about them being a woman.”
The IBA, which is led by an acquaintance of Russian President Vladimir Putin, disqualified Khelif last year but has not released more details on the tests, calling the process confidential. It faced the unprecedented punishment of being banned from Olympic participation in 2019 following years of conflict with the IOC.
“What we see now is that some want to own the definition of who is a woman,” Bach added. “And there I can only invite them to come up with a scientific-based new definition of who is a woman, and how can somebody being born, raised, competed and having a passport as a woman cannot be considered a woman?
“If they are coming up with something, we are ready to listen,” Bach added. "We are ready to look into it, but we will not take part in a sometimes politically motivated cultural war.”
On Saturday, Khelif fought aggressively from the opening bell, snapping a crisp left jab while the fighters circled. Her fans chanted her first name repeatedly midway through the opening round, and she bounded forward to throw a combination.
The exhausted fighters had a halfhearted hug after the bell, but they touched fists and exchanged smiles right before the verdict was announced. They touched hands again when Khelif held down the ropes to allow Hamori to leave the ring in a traditional boxing gesture of sportsmanship.
Khelif, who had failed to medal at the Tokyo Games held in 2021, will face Janjaem Suwannapheng of Thailand in the 66-kg semifinals on Tuesday at Roland Garros. Suwannpheng, a silver medalist at last year's world championships, upset defending Olympic champion Busenaz Surmeneli a few minutes before Khelif's victory.
As for Lin, also a two-time Olympian, she would clinch her first medal Sunday if she beats Svetlana Staneva of Bulgaria.
Amid the scrutiny, both Khelif and Lin have received only cheers from the crowds at North Paris Arena.
“What is going on in this context in the social media, with all this hate speech, with all this aggression and abuse, and fueled by this agenda, is totally unacceptable,” Bach said.
The reduced field at the Paris Olympics boxing tournament — which has the fewest number of total boxers since 1956 — means that many fighters can clinch medals with just two victories. Boxing awards two bronze medals in each weight class, which means every semifinalist wins a medal.
The Olympic sport reached gender parity for the first time in Paris, inviting 124 men and 124 women.
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J’khand: All 7 on board air ambulance killed in crash, bodies brought to hospital for post-mortem
Ranchi (PTI): All seven persons on board an air ambulance were killed after the aircraft crashed near Simaria in Jharkhand’s Chatra district, and their bodies have been brought to a hospital for post-mortem examination, officials said on Tuesday.
The Beechcraft C90 air ambulance, operated by Redbird Airways Pvt Ltd, was en route to Delhi from Ranchi when it crashed on Monday evening in the Bariatu Panchayat area of Simaria, located deep inside a forest, killing all seven onboard, including two pilots.
"We have brought all the seven bodies for post-mortem at Sadar Hospital, Chatra. The crash is being investigated," an official told PTI.
ALSO READ: Air ambulance with 7 onboard to Delhi from Ranchi crashes in Jharkhand's Chatra
The aircraft took off from Ranchi airport at 7.11 pm and went missing around 7.30 pm. It lost contact with the air traffic control about 20 minutes after departure, he said.
Ranchi airport director Vinod Kumar said inclement weather could be a possible reason behind the crash, though the exact cause would be ascertained after a detailed probe.
Jharkhand Health Minister Irfan Ansari said the state government will conduct a probe into how permission was given to the aircraft to fly during “inclement weather”. He also said proper compensation would be given to the kin of the deceased.
Terming the crash extremely unfortunate, Minister of State for Defence Sanjay Seth said unpleasant weather could be one of the reasons, which will be determined by the probe.
In a post on X, former chief minister and BJP leader Champai Soren said he was deeply saddened.
The deceased have been identified as Captain Vivek Vikas Bhagat, Captain Savrajdeep Singh, Sanjay Kumar, Dr Vikas Kumar Gupta, Sachin Kumar Mishra, Archana Devi and Dhuru Kumar.
Meanwhile, a lingering sense of grief prevailed in Chatra district, as the near and dear ones of those killed in the crash expressed shock and disbelief.
Bajrangi Prasad, the father of deceased Dr Vikas Kumar Gupta, said he had sold all his land to make his son a doctor, who was posted at Sadar Hospital in Ranchi.
"He has a seven-year-old son... He was meritorious and had completed his MBBS from Odisha’s Cuttack," Prasad, who hails from Bihar’s Aurangabad district, said.
Family members of Sanjay Kumar (41), however, blamed the “poor” health infrastructure behind the tragedy.
"Had we given proper treatment to my brother-in-law Sanjay in Ranchi, precious lives could have been saved. I lost both both Sanjay and sister Archana Devi in the incident," Kumar said.
Chatra Deputy Commissioner Keerthishree G had earlier told PTI that the bodies of all seven deceased were retrieved from the crash site and shifted to Chatra hospital for post-mortem examination.
In a statement, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said the Beechcraft C90 aircraft (VT-AJV) was operating a medical evacuation flight on the Ranchi-Delhi sector when it crashed in Kasaria Panchayat of Chatra district.
“The aircraft was airborne from Ranchi at 19:11 IST. After establishing contact with Kolkata at 19:34 IST, the aircraft lost communication and radar contact with Kolkata at approximately 100 nautical miles south-east of Varanasi,” it said, adding that there were seven people on board, including two crew members.
An Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) team has been dispatched to the crash site.
According to the DGCA website, Delhi-based non-scheduled operator Redbird has six aircraft in its fleet, including the one that crashed.
Anant Sinha, CEO of Devkamal Hospital in Ranchi, told PTI that the air ambulance was arranged by one of their patients.
"The patient, Sanjay Kumar, a resident of Chandwa in Latehar district, was brought to the hospital with 65 per cent burn injuries on February 16. He was being treated in the hospital," he said.
The family members decided to take him to Delhi for better treatment, Sinha said.
"They arranged for an air ambulance on Monday. The patient left the hospital for Delhi around 4.30 pm," he said.
