Imane Khelif has the right to appeal against World Boxing’s decision barring her from events unless she undergoes genetic sex testing, but the Algerian has not entered the world championships in Liverpool, the World Boxing president, Boris van der Vorst, has said.
World Boxing, which will oversee tournaments at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, introduced mandatory sex testing for all boxers in its competitions in May, less than a year after Khelif and Taiwan’s Lin Yu-ting won gold in Paris amid a gender-eligibility row.
On Tuesday, Khelif appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport seeking to overturn World Boxing’s ruling requiring boxers to undertake a PCR genetic test. “She has the right to do this,” Van der Vorst said on Wednesday. “For us, it’s important to stress that we introduced mandatory testing in order to have safe and competitive competitions, fair competitions.”
The World Boxing Championships begin in Liverpool on Thursday. When asked if Khelif would have failed the test, Van der Vorst said: “It’s too early to draw conclusions. She has simply not entered on behalf of her own federation here in Liverpool.” The Algerian Boxing Federation has not responded to a request for comment.
On Tuesday, World Boxing confirmed Lin would not be competing either. “I know that she also is not part of the entry list of the National Federation,” Van der Vorst added. He defended the tests as crucial for “safe and fair competitions” and to protect female boxing.
