The father of the Algerian boxer at the centre of the olympics gender eligibility storm has said criticism of her is “immoral” and “not fair”.
Imane Khelif hit the headlines when her Italian opponent Angela Carini quit less then a minute into their bout saying she feared for her safety.
The 25-year-old Algerian was not allowed to fight at last year’s world championships after failing to meet gender eligibility criteria.
Her father Amar Khelif said: “The attacks against her are immoral, it is not fair.”
He told Mail Online she had loved sport since she was “a little girl” and said the criticism was an attempt to stop her winning the olympic title.
He said: “I tell her prove them wrong in the ring and I hope that she will honor Algeria and Arabic countries and win the gold medal.”
He spoke out as the Hungarian Boxing Association protested against the decision to allow her to compete at the games ahead of her bout with Hungary’s Anna Luca Hamori.
Khelif is set to face Hamori in the quarter-finals on Saturday but the Hungarian Boxing Association has questioned her involvement at the Games and asked the Hungarian Olympic Committee to seek clarification from the IOC.
Lajos Berko, a member of the Hungarian Boxing Association’s executive board, told his country’s state news agency MTI: “I am very sad that there is a scandal and that we have to talk about a topic that is not compatible with sport.
“This is unacceptable and outrageous.
“The Hungarian Olympic Committee itself called for talks with the IOC to protect ‘the right of female competitors to equal opportunities and fair competition’.”
Berko added in a statement on his governing body’s website: “The Hungarian Boxing Federation and Hungarian boxing are proud of Luca Hamori’s Olympic performance, who reached the last eight in Paris after a victorious match.
“On August 3, Luca will face Algeria’s Imane Khelif for a guaranteed medal semi-final. In recent hours, our federation has notified the Hungarian Olympic Committee that we object to the participation of the Algerian athlete.
“We would like to express our gratitude to the Hungarian Olympic Committee. It continuously examines what means it can use to protect Luca Hamori’s rights to fair competition based on the rules in force. The (Hungarian Olympic Committee) president immediately initiated consultations with the IOC sports director in order to clarify the situation.”
Chinese Taipei fighter Lin Yu-ting, who is the second boxer involved in the eligibility controversy, is also through to the quarter-finals and will face Bulgaria’s Svetlana Staneva this weekend.
