World Boxing has issued an apology after including the name of Paris Olympics gold medalist Imane Khelif in their recent announcement regarding mandatory sex testing for all boxers in their competitions.
The global body acknowledged that Khelif’s privacy should have been protected.
The announcement, made last week by the newly recognized governing body for Olympic boxing, specifically stated that World Boxing had sent a letter to the Algerian Boxing Federation indicating Khelif “may not participate in the female category” of any World Boxing event until undergoing the required test. This comes less than a year after Khelif’s Olympic victory, which was accompanied by gender-eligibility controversies.
CNN reported that according to a source, World Boxing president Boris van der Vorst personally wrote to Algerian Boxing Federation president Abdelkader Abbas to apologize for publicly naming Khelif in the testing announcement. Van der Vorst admitted the organization should have made greater efforts to safeguard Khelif’s privacy.
In their original announcement, World Boxing had detailed that all athletes over 18 would be required to complete a PCR (polymerase chain reaction) genetic test, which can be administered through nasal or mouth swabs, saliva samples, or blood tests.
Neither Khelif nor the Algerian Boxing Federation could be reached for immediate comment regarding the apology. The Algerian federation had joined World Boxing in September 2023, becoming one of more than 100 national federations to align with the organization since its establishment earlier that year.
The incident has raised questions about athlete privacy protections in sensitive eligibility matters as World Boxing prepares to oversee boxing competitions in the 2028 Olympics following its provisional recognition by the International Olympic Committee.
