Defeated opponent LIN YU-TING made two X symbols with her fingers after losing to the boxer in the birth order.
Esra Yildiz Kahraman, 27, lost by unanimous decision of the judges in the semifinals in the women’s featherweight category up to 57 kg.
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Esra Yildiz Kahraman did a ‘double X’ after her fight against Lin Yu-TingCredit: PA
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Lin Yu Ting won the semi-final boutCredit: PA
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Kahraman had to settle for a bronze medalCredit: AFP
Taiwan’s Lin dominated the fight without losing a single point.
She spoke with the Turkish fighter after the result in the 57 kg featherweight category was announced in the ring.
However, as Kahraman then walked out to the center, she made a ‘double X’ gesture by crossing her fingers towards the audience and the cameras.
The symbol first appeared when Svetlina Staneva was beaten by Lin on Sunday.
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And after missing out on the podium with the defeat, a frustrated Staneva avoided eye contact with Lin before pointing at herself and using her index fingers to make a double cross symbol as she shouted: “No, no.”
This is believed to be a reference to the ongoing gender dispute, in which Lin is accused of having an XY chromosome, usually male, rather than the general female XX code.
It comes as a protest against Lin and Algerian boxer Imana Khelif’s chances at the Olympics.
Both women are competing at the Games 18 months after allegedly failing a gender appropriateness test.
It said tests carried out by the Russian-backed IBA found the couple positive for male XY chromosomes.
The duo was disqualified from the Women’s World Championship.
Gender-disputed boxer Imane Khelif has won her 2024 Olympics semi-final and is poised to challenge for a historic gold medal, Sun Sport’s Joshua Jones reports
Statement of the IOC and Boxing Unit Paris 2024 in full
See the full press release from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the Paris 2024 Boxing Unit…
Everyone has the right to play sports without discrimination.
All athletes participating in the boxing tournament of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games adhere to the competition conditions and entry rules, as well as all applicable medical regulations set by the Paris 2024 Boxing Unit (PBU). As with previous Olympic boxing events, the gender and age of the athletes is based on their passport.
These rules also applied during the qualification period, including the boxing tournaments of the 2023 European Games, the Asian Games, the Pan American Games and the Pacific Games, the ad hoc 2023 African Qualification Tournament in Dakar (SEN) and the two world qualification tournaments held in Busto Arsizio (ITA ) and Bangkok (THA) 2024, which included a total of 1,471 different boxers from 172 National Olympic Committees (NOCs), the Boxing Refugee Team and individual neutral athletes, and included over 2,000 qualifying bouts.
The PBU used the Tokyo 2020 boxing rules as a basis for developing its regulations for Paris 2024. This was to reduce the impact on athletes’ preparations and ensure consistency between Olympic Games. These Tokyo 2020 rules were based on the post-Rio 2016 rules, which were in place before the International Boxing Federation’s suspension by the IOC in 2019 and its subsequent withdrawal of recognition in 2023.
We have seen misinformation in reports about the two athletes competing in the 2024 Paris Olympics. The two athletes have been competing in international women’s boxing events for years, including the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, the International Boxing Association (IBA) World Championships and tournaments approved by the IBA.
These two athletes were victims of a sudden and arbitrary decision by the IBA. Towards the end of the 2023 IBA World Championship, they were suddenly disqualified without any due process.
According to the IBA minutes available on their website, this decision was initially made solely by the IBA Secretary General and the Executive Director. The IBA Board only subsequently ratified it and only subsequently requested to establish a procedure that will be applied in similar cases in the future and reflected in the IBA regulations. The minutes also say the IBA should “establish a clear procedure on gender testing”.
The current aggression against these two athletes is entirely based on this arbitrary decision, which was made without any proper procedure – especially considering that these athletes have been competing in top competition for many years.
Such an approach is contrary to good governance.
Eligibility rules should not change during an ongoing competition, and any rule change must follow appropriate processes and be based on scientific evidence.
The IOC is committed to protecting the human rights of all athletes participating in the Olympic Games in accordance with the Olympic Charter, the IOC Code of Ethics and the IOC Strategic Framework for Human Rights. The IOC is saddened by the abuse that the two athletes are currently being subjected to.
In 2023, the IOC withdrew the recognition of the IBA following its suspension in 2019. The withdrawal of recognition was confirmed by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). See the IOC press release after the verdict.
The IOC has made it clear that national boxing federations must reach a consensus on a new international federation in order for boxing to be included in the sports program of the LA28 Olympic Games.
However, the IOC is not currently insisting on this ruling despite Sebastian Coe suggesting that he would return it.
Kahraman did not leave the Olympics in Paris empty-handed, winning a bronze medal despite losing to Lin.
However, she remained tight-lipped about using the ‘double X’ symbol.
In the mix zone after the fight, she was asked about the moment, but said, “No comment” in English.
Lin will now fight for the gold medal on Saturday and will face Poland’s Julia Szeremeta.
The 20-year-old reached the final after defeating Filipino fighter Nesthy Petecio.
Speaking after her latest win, Lin said: “I’m one fight closer to my goal of a gold medal. I really enjoyed that fight.
“Every athlete here is among the best in the world, so I will have to do my best to prepare for the final.
“The feeling of entering the fight for the gold medal is a feeling of gratitude to myself for making it this far. After being eliminated in the first round of the Tokyo Olympics, it was a tough road to the final.
“I will use everything I have learned in life to do my best in the next match.”
Szeremeta, on the other hand, insisted that she was “confident” that she would beat Lin and win the gold herself.
She said: “I wasn’t nervous in the ring at all.
“I liked the atmosphere. There was no stress. I was just relaxed and very confident that I could win.
“I was confident. I think I’m the best fighter here and I’m confident in the final.
“I’m sure I’ll be a gold medalist.”
Khelif, meanwhile, will also be gunning for gold and will face China’s Yang Liu on Friday.
Olympics gender controversy
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) caused a great controversy by allowing two women to box who had previously failed the gender test.
Imane Khelif of Algeria and Lin Yu-ting of Taiwan have been disqualified from the Women’s World Cup in New Delhi, India in March 2023.
Lin Yu-ting was stripped of her bronze medal after failing the gender appropriateness test.
Khelif was disqualified in New Delhi for failing a testosterone level test.
Officials revealed that tests showed they had ‘XY chromosomes’ — indicating that the person is biologically male.
Rare ‘cross-sex’ medical conditions, medically known as sex-developmental differences (DSD), can also mean that outwardly female individuals can have ‘male’ chromosomes, or vice versa.
The Russian-led International Boxing Federation organized the event, but it is no longer recognized by the IOC.
IOC spokesman Mark Adams said: “These athletes have competed many times over the years, they didn’t just suddenly arrive – they competed in Tokyo.
“The federation has to make rules to ensure that there is fairness, but at the same time there is an opportunity for anyone to participate who wants to. It’s a difficult balance.
“At the end of the day, the experts in any sport are the people who work in it. If there’s a big advantage, that’s obviously not acceptable, but it needs to be a decision made at that level.”
Both Khelif and Lin competed at the postponed 2021 Tokyo Olympics. Lin is a two-time winner of the Asian Women’s Amateur Boxing Championship.
The IOC said all boxers in Paris “comply with the competition conditions and entry rules”.
The controversy follows the famous case of Caster Semenya.
South African middle distance runner Semenya has a condition that means her body naturally produces higher levels of testosterone than is normal for women.
She won gold in the 800m in London 2012 and Rio 2016, but was unable to compete in Tokyo 2021 after World Athletics introduced new rules independent of the then-MOC.
Categories: Optical Illusion
Source: HIS Education