A two-time Olympic gold medalist in women’s boxing called a Thursday Olympic boxing match between a biological male from Algeria and a female Italian boxer “scary.”
Angela Carini ended the match against Imane Khelif after 46 seconds following a series of hard blows to the head that left the Italian boxer with a broken nose. Claressa Shields, who won gold medals in the 2012 and 2016 Olympics, said on “America’s Newsroom” that the Olympic committees “dropped the ball.” RELATED: Olympic Committee Warns Media Against Using ‘Biologically Male,’ ‘Female’ When Referring To Trans Athletes)
“I couldn’t imagine getting inside the ring with a biological man,” Shields told “America’s Newsroom” co-hosts Bill Hemmer and Dana Perino. “Even though I sparred against a man, but fighting for the Olympics is way bigger than that and so much more on the line to have to go with a opposite gender. Women fight against women and men fight against men, so, I don’t see how the Olympics could have done something like this.”
WATCH:
‘It Is Just Unfair’: Two-Time Gold Medalist Reacts To ‘Scary’ Olympic Boxing Match Between Biological Male And Woman pic.twitter.com/dyJG1iuJ8S
— Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) August 1, 2024
“You know, I grew up in a gym sparring against a lot of guys and stuff but every fighter – woman fighter does not do that,” Shields said after Hemmer asked if she had seen video of the match. “So part of her it did seem it was much bigger and stronger and it is scary. I don’t know how old she is, but still… when you are born with bigger muscles and neck and you’ve grown up to be a man. You know, he didn’t change genders when he was a kid. So, it is, to me, it is just unfair and I just can’t believe that it is being done and I just couldn’t imagine it happening to me.”
Khelif was disqualified from the 2023 Women’s World Boxing Championships by the International Boxing Association (IBA) because he was “found to have competitive advantages over other female competitors,” according to a statement by the IBA released Wednesday. The organization’s statement also raised concerns about the “inconsistent application of eligibility criteria” and expressed concerns about “competitive fairness and athletes’ safety.”
WATCH:
Literally just one straight right hand from a biological man took this poor girl out. Just imagine if this went the full round.
This is the future Kamala Harris wants.pic.twitter.com/le2vPcIbVS
— Steven Cheung (@TheStevenCheung) August 1, 2024
“It is very hard to qualify for the Olympics, you have to go through so many different international tournaments, country tournaments, to even make it to the Olympics. So, for me, I can understand her devastation but it shouldn’t be ruined due to a man and I think that the Olympics definitely dropped the ball, you know,” Shields said. (RELATED: ‘This Is Just Reckless Behavior’: Top UFC Fighter Blasts Boxing Authority’s Decision To Allow Men To Fight Women)
“Listen, I don’t have anything against transgender women or transgender men,” Shields said. “All I’m saying is men should fight against men, women should fight against women and transgenders should fight against transgenders. That is how I fell, I will stand with that. I’m not homophobic or anything like that or against the gay community, but that’s not right.”
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