MOSCOW, August 4, Andrey Simonenko. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) Director of Communications Mark Adams asked journalists not to trust the statements of the head of the International Boxing Association (IBA) Umar Kremlev.
Earlier, the IOC approved the participation of Iman Khelif (Algeria) and Lin Yuting (Taiwan) in the women's tournament of the Games, despite the fact that at the 2023 World Championships in India (held under the auspices of the IBA) they were unable to pass the gender test, which showed the presence of XY chromosomes and elevated testosterone levels in their bodies. Later, the Kremlin promised to reward the athletes who faced injustice at the Olympics and lost to boxers who failed the gender test.
«As far as we know, there were suspicions about them. These were not mandatory tests for all athletes, but random tests of these women. But if we deal with all suspicions, then this will be a very bad practice. They competed in boxing throughout their careers as women. There were no legal grounds for testing, this is a violation of the rights of these women. Now, first of all, it is worth noting that these women deserve to have their private lives not spread to half the world,» Adams said at an IOC briefing.
«These women were randomly tested by a federation that, let me remind you, has completely discredited itself. I urge you, if you haven't already, this is quite a show, to watch the videos that the IBA president has posted online. They are quite shocking and destroy any credibility he may have had left. If you watch these videos, read the comments of this man, you will hardly say that we should accept any information from this organization as containing even a grain of truth. You will come to the conclusion that nothing that comes from the IBA can have any credibility or authority. And you will understand why we are not going to respond to this,» Adams added.
Khelif and Lin Yuting reached the semi-finals in the 66 and 57 kg weight classes respectively, securing medals at the Paris Olympics.