Olympic gold medalist Nicola Adams wades into Imane Khelif boxing row

Former Team GB star and Olympic gold medalist Nicola Adams has commented publicly on Algerian boxer Imane Khelif’s participation in the Paris 2024 Olympics.

Algeria’s Khelif, who has been confirmed as eligible to compete in the women’s event, beat Italy’s Angela Carini on Thursday (1 August) a bout that lasted just 46 seconds.

Khelif previously competed at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics but she – and fellow boxer Lin Yu-ting – were disqualified from last year’s World Championships after failing to meet eligibility criteria, none of which saw them undergo testosterone examinations.

Further details on why the pair were disqualified from the World Championships were not given at the time.

IOC spokesman Mark Adams addressed the controversy following the Khelif-Carini fight, reiterating Khelif and Lin both comply with Olympic eligibility rules and asserted their participation is “not a transgender issue”.

Now, former team GB boxer Nicola Adams has weighed in on the controversy on social media, expressing support for Carini and making unsubstantiated claims about Khelif.

She wrote on X and Instagram: “After years of fighting for women’s boxing to even exist in the Olympics and then all the training they go through to get there it was hard to watch another fighter to be forced to give up on her Olympic dreams.”

Adams is a double Olympic champion, who won her first gold medal in London in 2012 and her second in Rio in 2016.

Olympic and boxing bodies back Khelif

On Thursday (1 August), the International Olympic Committee (IOC) defended Khelif, as well as Lin, saying everyone has “the right to practise sport without discrimination” and the “aggression” the pair are now facing is because of an “arbitrary decision” by the IBA.

The statement reads: “We have seen in reports misleading information about two female athletes competing at the Olympic Games Paris 2024.

“The two athletes have been competing in international boxing competitions for many years in the women’s category, including the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, International Boxing Association (IBA) World Championships and IBA-sanctioned tournaments.

“These two athletes were the victims of a sudden and arbitrary decision by the IBA. Towards the end of the IBA World Championships in 2023, they were suddenly disqualified without any due process.”

The statement continued: “According to the IBA minutes available on their website, this decision was initially taken solely by the IBA Secretary General and CEO.

“The IBA Board only ratified it afterwards and only subsequently requested that a procedure to follow in similar cases in the future be established and reflected in the IBA Regulations. The minutes also say that the IBA should ‘establish a clear procedure on gender testing’.”

“The current aggression against these two athletes is based entirely on this arbitrary decision, which was taken without any proper procedure – especially considering that these athletes had been competing in top-level competition for many years.”

The IOC previously said that “all athletes participating in the boxing tournament of the Olympic Games comply with the competitions eligibility and entry regulations as well as all applicable medical regulations”. 

The Algerian Olympic Committee (COA) has also released a statement defending Khelif’s participation in the Olympics.

A statement read: “COA strongly condemns the unethical targeting and maligning of our esteemed athlete, Imane Khelif, with baseless propaganda from certain foreign media outlets.

“Such attacks on her personality and dignity are deeply unfair, especially as she prepares for the pinnacle of her career at the Olympics.

“The COA has taken all necessary measures to protect our champion.”