Paris Olympics: Lin Yu-ting, boxer in middle of gender controversy, guaranteed a medal

PARIS — Lin Yu-ting, one of two women boxers embroiled in a gender controversy at the Summer Olympics, won her quarterfinal bout in the 57kg division and is guaranteed a medal.

Lin, of Chinese Taipei, defeated Bulgaria’s Svetlana Staneva by unanimous decision, 5-0. Lin is a long, lanky lefthander who had little trouble outboxing Staneva. The fight featured numerous tie-ups and step-ins by the referee.

In the Olympics, all four boxers who reach the semifinals are guaranteed at least a bronze medal.

Lin and Algeria’s Imane Khelif of the 66kg division, have found themselves in a global spotlight and culture war after it was revealed that both were disqualified from the 2023 World Championships by the International Boxing Association for failing “to meet eligibility rules.”

IBA President Umar Kremlev told a Russian news agency that the disqualifications were because “it was proven they have XY chromosomes.”

However, the IOC has repeatedly and emphatically defended the boxers as women and dismissed the credibility of the IBA, which has deep ties to the Russian government and no longer oversees boxing at the Olympics due to what the IOC calls repeated judging scandals and general corruption.

The IOC maintains that both fighters, who have lengthy international careers — including at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics where neither medaled — met all criteria and testing to be deemed eligible here.

Most notably, it has repeatedly stated that the fighters are not transgender athletes.

“We have two boxers who are born as woman, who have been raised as woman, who have a passport as a woman and have competed for many years as woman,” IOC president Thomas Bach said Saturday. “Some want to own a definition of who is a woman.”

“This is not a transgender case,” IOC spokesperson Mark Adams said. “There has been some confusion that this is a man fighting a woman. This is just not the case. On that there is consensus. Scientifically this is not a man fighting a woman.”

At issue is the IBA’s decision to disqualify both fighters from the 2023 World Championships following the results of an undisclosed “gender test.” IBA minutes of that decision said the two also “failed” a gender test at the 2022 World Championships but the results were not returned until after competition.

Unanswered by the IBA is why they allowed both fighters to compete in 2023 if the IBA knew about the 2022 test.

The controversy is sure to continue on despite IOC appeals.

So, too, will the competition for Lin Yu Tang, who heads to the medal rounds.