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The Olympic boxing champion Lin Yu-ting has been cleared to compete in the female category at World Boxing events, the Chinese Taipei Boxing Association (CTBA) has announced, hailing the news as a “tremendous relief”. Lin and the Algerian boxer Imane Khelif were embroiled in a gender row at the 2024 Paris Games, where they won Olympic titles in separate weight classes.
World Boxing, a body recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), confirmed the decision to allow Lin back into the ring after its medical experts ruled that the 30-year-old athlete was female. The decision means Lin can compete in the Asian Boxing Championships in the Mongolian capital, Ulaanbaatar, starting next Saturday, her first international event since Paris.
“We are pleased that World Boxing’s independent medical experts thoroughly reviewed all evidence and confirmed that she has been female since birth,” the CTBA said in a statement.
Under World Boxing’s policy introduced in August, fighters over 18 who want to participate in the women’s category need to take a one-off genetic test. Lin was tested last year, but World Boxing has not revealed the results. She missed the world championships in Liverpool in September after reportedly failing to get a response from World Boxing.
The CTBA began an appeal process, submitting medical documents to World Boxing that were analysed by its medical committee. Its secretary general, Tom Dielen, said in a statement: “Following the conclusion of an appeal process… we can confirm that the boxer is eligible to compete in the female category at World Boxing competitions.”
Lin and Khelif were excluded from the International Boxing Association’s 2023 world championships after the IBA said they had failed eligibility tests. However, the IOC allowed them both to compete in Paris, saying they had been victims of “a sudden and arbitrary decision by the IBA”.
Khelif has not competed in World Boxing-sanctioned events since the implementation of the test, but has periodically indicated she would like to return to the Olympic-level sport. Khelif also plans to make her professional boxing debut in April, but pro fighters are now allowed to compete in the Olympics.
Chromosome testing was common in Olympic sports during the 20th century, but was largely abandoned in the 1990s because of numerous ambiguities that could not be easily resolved by the tests, collectively known as differences in sex development.
Along with its appeal process, World Boxing said it offers additional analysis and evaluation for athletes with Y chromosome genetic material who wish to compete in the women’s categories, including genetic screening, hormonal profiles, anatomical examination and further evaluation of endocrine profiles by medical specialists.
