Olympics-Boxing-Australia’s Rahimi warns of mental toll on boxers involved in gender row

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By Aadi Nair

PARIS (Reuters) – The speculation and discussion over Imane Khelif and Lin Yu-ting’s participation at the Olympics could have implications on the mental health of the boxers, Australia’s Tina Rahimi said on Friday as she urged people to wait for clarity on the subject.

Featherweight Rahimi competes in the same division as Taiwan’s double world champion Lin who along with Algerian Khelif were disqualified from last year’s World Championships after falling foul of gender eligibility rules.

The International Olympic Committee said the International Boxing Association (IBA)’s decision to disqualify the boxers last year was arbitrary and the main cause for the furore.

Rahimi, who lost to Poland’s Julia Szeremeta on Friday, asked critics to remember that Khelif and Lin were “human at the end of the day.

“I believe it takes a really massive toll on people’s mental health,” she added. “Going into a major event like this, I think it’s really unnecessary, unless there are proper facts to prove that is the case.”

Asked about athletes with male XY chromosomes competing in women’s events, Rahimi said: “I don’t know where the evidence is for that. Obviously, men should be participating in men’s sport and women should be participating in women’s sport.

“I think there’s just been a lot of talk, but there’s no proper evidence that has been provided. I feel like until there’s proper facts, people shouldn’t be really talking about it.”

Puerto Rican boxer Ashleyann Lozada Motta, who also competes in the featherweight category, said on Friday: “Genetics is a factor that is very important … But I’m not any afraid of her (Lin).”

Lin next faces Svetlana Kamenova Staneva of Bulgaria on Sunday after welterweight Khelif takes on Hungary’s Luca Anna Hamori on Saturday.

(Reporting by Aadi Nair in Paris; Editing by Ken Ferris)