Olympics: ‘This is unjust,’ Boxer tearfully quits fight after punch by opponent who failed gender eligibility test

In one of the most controversial Olympic bouts ever, a boxer labeled a ‘biological male’ triumphed over an Italian woman.

The fight between Italy’s Angela Carini and her Algerian opponent Imane Khelif lasted only 46 seconds. The Italian fighter threw her helmet to the ground and shouted, “This is unjust,” as the match was abandoned.

Carini, 25, refused to shake hands and collapsed in tears after receiving just two punches from Khelif, who had previously been banned from a major boxing contest before the Olympics due to failing testosterone tests for gender qualification.

After the match was stopped, the referee raised Khelif’s hand in victory. However, a visibly enraged Carini pulled her hand away from the official and walked off.

Ignoring Khelif, Carini fell to her knees and cried, saying she had never experienced such powerful blows in a contest before.

Speaking after the match, the heartbroken Italian said: ‘I’m used to suffering. I’ve never taken a punch like that, it’s impossible to continue. I’m nobody to say it’s illegal.

‘I got into the ring to fight. But I didn’t feel like it anymore after the first minute. I started to feel a strong pain in my nose. I didn’t give up, but a punch hurt too much and so I said enough. I’m leaving with my head held high.’

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