Olympic Boxer Apologizes for 'Sad' Fallout Over Gender Eligibility Controversy

Angela Carini's decision to abandon her boxing match after just 46 seconds against Algeria's Imane Khelif created a firestorm at the Paris Olympics on Thursday.

The Italian's assertion that Khelif was "too strong" of an opponent reignited the debate around gender eligibility in sports, and it prompted the International Olympic Committee to defend its tournament rules, the same as the Tokyo Games' boxing guidelines, and denounce the International Boxing Association's 2023 ban of Khelif as "sudden and arbitrary."

On Friday, Carini felt the weight of her actions and the subsequent fallout.

In an interview with Gazzetta dello Sport, Carini said she was saddened by the controversy and felt "sorry for my opponent." She also expressed no dissatisfaction with Khelif being allowed to compete by the IOC, which clarified that "the gender and age of athletes are based on their passport."

"If the IOC said she can fight, I respect that decision," Carini said.

Carini had dreams of winning a medal in Paris to honor her late father and coach, who died shortly after she competed in the Tokyo Olympics three years ago. Admittedly overwhelmed with disappointment, she expressed regret for leaving the ring without shaking Khelif's hand.

“It was not intentional, in fact I apologize to her and to everyone,” Carini said. “I was angry, because my Games had already gone up in smoke. I have nothing against Khelif and on the contrary if I happened to meet her again I would give her a hug.”

After Carini chose to quit her round-of-16 match, Khelif and Chinese Tapei’s Lin Yu‑ting, who was disqualified by the IBA for the same reason as Khelif's ban at the 2023 world championships, quickly became targets for criticism and scorn, particularly on social media.

The IOC issued a statement to call out "the misleading information" about Khelif and Lin, adding that they "have been competing in international boxing competitions for many years in the women's category."

“All this controversy certainly made me sad, and I also felt sorry for my opponent," Carini said. "She had nothing to do with it and like me was only here to fight."