FOOTAGE has emerged of Algerian boxer Imane Khelif landing a huge right hand that forced Angela Carini to quit after just 46 SECONDS.
Carini, 25, took a pair of shots to the face from Khelif, who last year failed a gender test, before abruptly calling off the contest.
Khelif, 25, is one of two athletes who have been cleared to compete in the women’s boxing, having been disqualified from last year’s Women’s World Championships for failing to meet eligibility criteria.
She immediately went on the front foot in her opening Olympic bout as she landed a massive right hand, sending shock-waves through her opponent.
Carini stayed on her feet but the brutal chin shot slammed her back and even knocked her face strap off.
And just moments later an emotional Carini walked to her corner before telling them “it hurt like hell”.
After consulting with her coaches, Carini opted to abandon the contest and Khelif was declared the winner.
The Italian did not acknowledge her controversial opponent after the 66kg welterweight contest, as Khelif tried to approach her in the ring.
Speaking in Italian, Carini revealed that she had “never felt a punch like it”.
She added that she was there to “honour her father and represent her country” – and that she felt “heartbroken”.
OLYMPICS FREE BETS – SIGN UP OFFERS AND DEAL FOR PARIS 2024
THE International Olympic Committee (IOC) stirred up a huge controversy by clearing two women to box who had previously failed a gender test.
Algeria’s Imane Khelif and Taiwan’s Lin Yu-ting were disqualified at the Women’s World Championships in New Delhi, India, in March 2023.
Lin Yu-ting was stripped of a bronze medal after failing a gender eligibility test.
Khelif was disqualified in New Delhi for failing a testosterone level test.
Officials found tests showed they had ‘XY chromosomes’ — which indicates a person is biologically male.
Rare ‘intersex’ medical conditions, medically known as differences in sexual development (DSDs), can also mean outwardly female individuals can have ‘male’ chromosomes, or vice versa.
The Russia-led International Boxing Association organised that event but is no longer recognised by the IOC.
IOC spokesman Mark Adams said: “These athletes have competed many times before for many years, they haven’t just suddenly arrived – they competed in Tokyo.
“The federation needs to make the rules to make sure that there is fairness but at the same time there is the ability for everyone to take part that wants to. That is a difficult balance.
“In the end the experts for each sport are the people who work in that. If there is a big advantage that clearly is not acceptable, but that needs to be a decision made at that level.”
Both Khelif and Lin competed at the delayed Olympic Games in Tokyo in 2021. Lin is a two-time winner at the Asian Women Amateur Boxing Championships.
The IOC said all boxers in Paris “comply with the competition’s eligibility and entry regulations”.
The controversy follows the famous case of Caster Semenya.
South African middle-distance runner Semenya has a condition which means her body naturally produces higher levels of testosterone than normal for women.
She won gold in the 800m at London 2012 and Rio in 2016 but was unable to compete at Tokyo in 2021 after World Athletics brought in new rules independently of the IOC at the time.
She told reporters: “I went into the ring to fight. I didn’t give up, but a punch hurt too much and so I said enough. I’m leaving with my head held high”.
Khelif, meanwhile, was marched through the mixed zone without speaking to the press.
Italy’s family minister Eugenia Roccella and sports minister Andrea Abodi had earlier raised concerns about the eligibility rules at Paris, as have some of the boxers in the women’s competition.
After today’s fight, a spokesperson for the Italian team revealed that friends and family had told Carini not to take to the ring at all.
Taiwan’s Lin Yu-ting was stripped of a bronze medal at the World Championships in March 2023, after failing a gender eligibility test.
However featherweight Lin has been cleared to take on Sitora Turdibekova on Friday.
The International Boxing Association (IBA) released a statement on Wednesday, stating their decisions to ban them last year were made ‘after a meticulous review’.
The IBA hit out at the IOC, stating its differing regulations “raise serious questions about both competitive fairness and athletes’ safety.”
