Ex-Olympian Sharron Davies has hit out at the “weak” IOC (International Olympic Committee) and expressed her desire for change after the Paris games were tainted by a bitter gender row.
Algeria’s Imane Khelif and Taiwan’s Lin Yu-ting both won gold medals in boxing without dropping a round in their respective tournaments.
Both were disqualified from last year’s world championships by the International Boxing Association (IBA) after it said they had failed unspecified gender tests. The two athletes have always maintained they are biological women.
Speaking on GB News, Davies said the IOC have been weak on the row as she hit out at the “shambles” that ensued.
Sharron Davies has waded in on the controversial boxing row that has plagued the Olympics
PA / GB NEWS
“We have to do something properly and constructively to protect the female category”, she said.
“We can’t allow a passport which anyone can apply for and change to be the qualification you need to qualify for the female category.
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“It was really atrocious that we had biological males punching females when we know they punch 162 per cent harder. This was a serious accident waiting to happen.
“Those two flew through, they didn’t lose a single point. Not only did they take a place from their own countries for a female athlete, they have obviously taken medals from female athletes that will never be able to get them back.”
With the Olympics now having reached a conclusion and the wheels being set in motion for Los Angeles 2028, the IOC is set to appoint a new president.
Lord Sebastian Coe has been mooted for the top role and Davies told Bev Turner he could be a good choice for defending women’s sport.
Sharron Davies joined Andrew Pierce and Bev Turner on GB News
GB NEWS
“I think Thomas Bach has been very weak. I’m not impressed”, she said of the outgoing president.
“He tried very hard to extend his term which thank goodness, wasn’t allowed to happen.
“He’s been there for 11 years, they’re allowed to be there for 12. He wanted to go for another four and I think it’s very much time for a change.
“Hopefully we get someone that’s prepared to stand up to the wokerati part of society that think we shouldn’t have any rules.”
Imane Khelif was permitted to take part in the Paris Olympics despite controversy surrounding her involvement
GETTYImane Khelif has responded furiously to questions over her eligibility, saying they made her victory taste even sweeter after she eased to Olympic gold.
Thousands of Algerians packed the Philippe-Chatrier Court stands at Roland Garros on Friday night to watch her make history.
“I am fully qualified to take part in this competition – I am a woman,” said Khelif at a post-fight press conference. “I was born a woman, I’ve lived as a woman and I’ve competed as a woman. There’s no doubt that there are enemies of success, and that gives my success a special taste because of these attacks.”
The IBA had failed to provide any concrete evidence of the testing process or results at a chaotic press conference staged by the discredited governing body in Paris last week.
The IBA has been barred from involvement in each of the last two Olympic boxing tournaments by the IOC over financial and corruption concerns and its president Umar Kremlev has repeatedly railed against the governance of IOC president.