BERLIN (Reuters) -Algeria’s Olympic gold medallist Imane Khelif has appealed to sport’s highest court against a World Boxing decision barring her from upcoming events unless she undergoes genetic sex testing, CAS said on Monday.
The appeal seeks to overturn the ruling and allow Algeria’s Khelif to compete at the 2025 World Boxing Championships without having the test, the Court of Arbitration for Sport said in a statement, adding that it had dismissed her request to suspend the decision while the case is heard.
“The parties are currently exchanging written submissions and, with their agreement, a hearing will be scheduled,” CAS added.
Khelif took gold in the women’s welterweight division at the Paris Games last year amid a gender dispute over her eligibility after she was disqualified from the 2023 World Championships by the International Boxing Association, which said sex chromosome tests had ruled her ineligible.
However, the Algerian competed in the women’s category in Paris after the International Olympic Committee stripped the IBA of its status as the sport’s governing body in 2023 and took control of organising boxing in Paris.
World Boxing, which will oversee the sport at the 2028 Olympics, introduced mandatory sex testing for all boxers in its competitions in May, adding that Khelif would not be allowed to compete until she underwent such a test.
World Boxing president Boris van der Vorst later apologised over Khelif being named in the announcement, saying her privacy should have been protected.
Khelif was due to compete in a World Boxing tournament in the Netherlands in June, but opted to skip it.
The 26-year-old has repeatedly said she was born a woman and has a long history in female boxing competitions. In March, she said she would defend her title at the 2028 Games.
(Reporting by Kirsti Knolle and Chiranjit Ojha in Bengaluru; Editing Editing by Riham Alkousaa and Ken Ferris)
Read the full article here
