PARIS — The second boxer at the center of a global debate over eligibility and gender justice at the Paris Olympics won her semifinal fight Wednesday, moving up to the featherweight gold medal fight.
Lin Yu-ting, representing Chinese Taipei, defeated Esra Yildiz Kahraman of Turkey by unanimous decision to advance to the final round of the women’s 57-kilogram competition on Saturday.
Lin and another Olympic boxer, Imane Khelif of Algeria, continue to face intense scrutiny and false accusations about their gender and eligibility to compete against women.
After losing the fight on Wednesday night, Kahraman made an X sign with her fingers, mirroring the actions of Bulgarian fighter Svetlana Staneva, who also lost to Lin earlier in the competition.
The Bulgarian Olympic Committee later confirmed that Staneva was talking about having XX chromosomes, in an attempt to mock Lin.
Turkish Olympic Committee representatives could not immediately be reached for comment Wednesday evening, but on social media post declared Kahraman to be the real winner.
Following Lin’s victory on Wednesday night, the Taiwanese fighter made passing reference to the ongoing matter and said she is blocking it out by focusing on the details of the upcoming fight.
“Take one step at a time, focus on each match, take advantage of every opportunity in the ring and aim for victory until the end,” Lin told reporters.
All five judges had it 10-9 for Lin in all three rounds – although this was no cakewalk, as Kahraman, at times, appeared to be the more aggressive fighter.
But in the end, Kahraman could not resolve Lin’s height and superior technical ability.
The 5-foot-9 Kahraman threw several flurries of punches, bringing roars from the packed Roland-Garros Stadium crowd, but she was unable to get close enough to do any damage against the 5-9 Lin.
The victorious Lin also appeared to slow down towards the end of the third round and later told reporters he was battling a cold.
“The opponent is very strong and put a lot of pressure on me, so fatigue is normal,” said Lin, in a low and hoarse voice.
Khelif also won the semi-final, defeating Thailand’s Janjaem Suwannapheng in the women’s 66 kilogram division match on Tuesday to advance to the gold medal match on Friday.
Khelif and Lin have competed in women’s events for years, including at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, and there is no indication that they identify as transgender or intersex, the latter referring to people born with chromosomes or reproductive organs that do not strictly fall into the male-female gender binary.
The questions surrounding their gender stemmed from a decision by the Russian-led International Boxing Association to disqualify them from last year’s Women’s World Boxing Championship in New Delhi.
At the time, the association’s president, Umar Kremlev — who is allegedly an acquaintance of Vladimir Putin — claimed in Russian state media that the two women failed an unspecified gender test showing that they have male chromosomes. The reports resurfaced during the Paris Olympics, where Russia was banned from competing.
The International Olympic Committee came fiercely to the defense of Khelif and Lin and repeatedly declared them eligible due to the genders listed on their passports. IOC officials also noted that the IOC severed ties with the IBA last year due to financial and ethical improprieties.
IOC President Thomas Bach condemned incendiary online comments about the two boxers at a news conference on Sunday, calling them “hate speech.”
“We have two boxers who were born women, who were raised as women, who have a woman’s passport and who competed for many years as women,” Bach said.
Lin thanked his fans for their support over the past few days. She supposedly He began boxing as a child to protect his mother from domestic violence.
Khelif has repeatedly spoken out against the allegations that she is not a cisgender woman since began in 2023, and most recently told reporters on Saturday: “I want to tell the whole world that I am a woman.”
Khelif father also insisted that his daughter is a woman he raised as a girl. Speaking to Algerian broadcaster SNTV on Sunday night, Khelif appealed to the public to “avoid intimidating all athletes”.
The controversy surrounding Lin and Khelif has raised questions about the IBA’s legitimacy in recent days.
In 2019, the IOC suspended the IBA before ceasing to formally recognize the association last year. A report commissioned by the IOC last year alleged that the IBA participated in years of financial and ethical corruption. USA Boxing, the sport’s governing body in the US, also cut ties with the IBA last year, citing the “ongoing failures” of the association’s leadership.
IOC spokesman Mark Adams called the IBA eligibility tests “flawed” and “not legitimate” at a press conference on Sunday.
The IBA defended its decision to disqualify Lin and Khelif from the championships last year, saying in a statement last week that the boxers also failed similar eligibility tests at the 2022 Women’s World Boxing Championships in Istanbul.
IBA officials took no action against Lin and Khelif, who reportedly failed the 2022 tests, and let them compete again last year. The timing of last year’s disqualifications, which came just days after Khelif defeated an undefeated Russian boxer, has also been questioned.
A hastily called press conference by the IBA in Paris on Monday shed little light on the gender-related allegations as Kremlev, its president, responded to several questions with incoherent comments against the Olympics. Kremlev compared the Olympics to Sodom and Gomorrah, biblical cities destroyed because of their notorious sinfulness.
As false accusations about Khelif and Lin spread across the world last week, prominent figures including Elon Muskauthor of “Harry Potter” J.K. Rowling and former President Donald Trump quickly intervened.
“I’m going to keep men out of women’s sports!” Trump wrote on his social media site, Truth Social, in all capital letters.
Some of those who initially criticized Khelif and Lin apologized as more information about the boxers and the legitimacy of the IBA emerged. Among those who apologized was professional and American-influenced boxer Logan Paul, who admitted to X last week that “may be guilty of spreading misinformation.”
Others doubled down, including Rowling, who shared about a dozen critical posts about the Olympics to her 14 million X followers on Wednesday, with many of them referring to Khelif as “a man.”
Riley Gaines, a former college swimmer who has been openly critical of trans women participating in women’s sports, also referred to Khelif as “a man” and said:
“Why should there be women’s sports if any mediocre man can compete in them?”
American middle-distance runner Nikki Hiltz, one of at least three non-binary athletes participating in this Olympics, appeared to defend the boxers on Tuesday after advancing to the semifinals in the women’s 1,500-meter race.
“There is a lot of ignorance and hate out there right now,” Hiltz wrote on Instagram. “For those who identify as non-binary or trans and are doing cool things in the world (which is probably all of you, because all queer people are cool AF), remember that you are magical and that you are not the critic that counts.”
The Boston Globe had to issue a correction last week because it misidentified Khelif as transgender. In a statement aboutthe newspaper said it “incorrectly” identified Khelif as trans and acknowledged “the magnitude of the error.”
Khelif will face Yang Liu of China for the gold medal in his category on Friday.
Lin will face Poland’s Julia Szeremeta, who rallied for a split decision victory in the other semi-final, in the gold medal match on Saturday at Roland-Garros.
Lin said he doesn’t take any opponent lightly.
“At the Olympics, getting to the top four means everyone is really strong,” she said. “Some actions taken to win are understandable. I will humbly reflect and hope to do my best.”
Lin’s fans in Taiwan had to stay up well past 3:30 a.m. to watch her fight.
“I know a lot of supporters in Taiwan, and now it’s late (in) Taiwan, and thank you for your support in front of the TV, even if you have to work,” Lin said. “Thank you all.”
David K. Li reported from Paris and Matt Lavietes and Jiachuan Wu reported from New York.
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