The Paris Olympics became the source of global outcry after a 46-second fight between two boxers in the women’s 66 kg. weight class sparked debate over gender and fairness in sports. Thursday’s bout between Imane Khelif of Algeria and Italy’s Angela Carini ended prematurely after Carini suffered a powerful blow to the head, then forfeited the match. After it was revealed that Khelif had been barred from competing at last year’s world championships by the International Boxing Association (IBA) as a result of failing a “gender eligibility test,” a deluge of misinformation, hate and protest soon followed on social media.
Northeastern University experts say gender eligibility tests are arbitrary, used to unfairly scrutinize women, and often don’t take into account the range of health conditions that can impact a person’s gender presentation. “One of the biggest problems with gender eligibility tests for women athletes has been how unevenly and arbitrarily they are called for and administered,” says K.J. Rawson, a professor of English and women’s, gender and sexuality studies at Northeastern.
