The Italian government and the Italian Olympic Committee (CONI) expressed concern about the fact Italy’s Angela Carini is set to face Khelif.
Without specifically mentioning Khelif, CONI said that it has “taken action with the International Olympic Committee to ensure that the rights of all athletes comply with the Olympic Charter and health regulations”.
Italy’s Family and Equal Opportunities Minister Eugenia Roccella went further.
“It is of great concern to learn that two transgender people, men who identify as women, were admitted to women’s boxing competitions at the Olympic Games in Paris after having been excluded from recent competitions,” Roccella said.
“It is surprising that there are no certain, strict, uniform criteria at the international level, and that there can be a suspicion, and far more than a suspicion, of an unfair and potentially dangerous contest for one of the contenders at the Olympics, an event that symbolises sporting fairness”.
Italian Sports Minister Andrea Abodi echoed those comments. “I find it difficult to understand that there is no alignment in the parameters of minimum hormonal values at an international level, which includes the European and world championships and the Olympics,” Abodi said.
“In the event that represents the highest values of sport, the safety of female and male athletes must be guaranteed, as well as respect for fair competition. That is not how it will be tomorrow for Angela Carini.”
The IOC has repeatedly pointed out that the two boxers are women on their passports and their inclusion has been approved.
“All athletes participating in the Boxing Tournament of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 comply with the competition’s eligibility and entry regulations, as well as all applicable medical regulations, in accordance with rules 1.4 and 3.1 of the Paris 2024 Boxing Unit (PBU) ‘Event Regulations of the Olympic Boxing Qualifying Tournaments and the boxing competition at the Olympic Games Paris 2024’ (Paris 2024 Event Regulations) and with the ‘Medical Rules for the Olympic Boxing Qualifying Tournaments and the boxing competition at the Olympic Games Paris 2024’,” a statement said in response to inquiries by Telegraph Sport and other outlets.
Last year, after Khelif was ruled out of facing Yang Liu in the 66kg division world championship final, the IBA declined to explain exactly why she was excluded over a “failure to meet the IBA eligibility criteria”.
“The IBA upholds its rules and regulations as well as its athletes’ personal and medical privacy, the eligibility criteria breach therefore cannot be shared by the IBA,” a statement said, before the Algerian Olympic Committee said she was disqualified for “medical reasons”.
“There are some countries that did not want Algeria to win a gold medal,” Khelif then told Algerian Ennahar TV. “This is a conspiracy and a big conspiracy, and we will not be silent about it.”