Algeria's Imane Khelif watches during her women's 66kg preliminaries round of 16 boxing match against Italy's Angela Carini during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at the North Paris Arena, in Villepinte on August 1, 2024. Mohd Rasfan, AFP/File
World Boxing on Friday announced the introduction of mandatory sex tests for both male and female fighters who want to compete in sponsored competitions.
"The introduction of mandatory testing will be part of a new policy on 'Sex, Age and Weight' to ensure the safety of all participants and deliver a competitive level playing field for men and women," World Boxing said in a statement.
The federation said it made the decision in the aftermath of controversy centered around, among others, Algerian boxer Imane Khelif at last year's Paris Olympics.
During a knockout round, Khelif's Italian opponent refused to fight her after baselessly claiming Khelif was not a woman because she hit too powerfully.
Khelif went on to climb the ladder and win the gold medal.
World Boxing, which has been asked by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to organize the boxing competition for the upcoming 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, says it has informed the Algerian Boxing Federation that Khelif must submit to a sex test before being allowed to compete in the upcoming Eindhoven Box Cup in the Netherlands from June 5-10.
"World Boxing has written to the Algerian Boxing Federation to inform it that Imane Khelif will not be allowed to participate in the female category at the Eindhoven Box Cup or any World Boxing event until Imane Khelif undergoes sex testing," read a statement from the world body.
National boxing federations will be required to test and confirm the sex of individual athletes and to provide certification thereof to World Boxing before they are allowed to compete.
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How will sex testing work?
The new policy will require all athletes over 18 to undergo a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) genetic test before they will be allowed to participate in World Boxing-sanctioned events.
The tests are conducted with a nasal or mouth swab, or with a blood or saliva sample, in order to detect genetically specific material to determine a person's assigned sex at birth.
"The PCR test is a laboratory technique used to detect specific genetic material, in this case the SRY gene, that reveals the presence of the Y chromosome, which is an indicator of biological sex," World Boxing said.
World Boxing said that athletes seeking to compete in women's categories will "be referred to independent clinical specialists for genetic screening, hormonal profiles, anatomical examination or other valuation of endocrine profiles by medical specialists," if initial test results show evidence of male chromosomal material.
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The new policy also provides the possibility of appeal.
Khelif has announced plans to defend her gold medal at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics and is expected to return to international competition at Eindhoven next week.
"For me, I see myself as a girl, just like any other girl. I was born a girl, raised as a girl, and have lived my entire life as one," the champion boxer said back in March.