People should continue to cheer for Taiwanese boxer Lin Yu-ting (林郁婷) at the Olympics Games in Paris today, despite British writer J.K. Rowling’s remarks against her, the Sports Administration said in a statement on Wednesday.
Rowling recently shared on X a story from the Guardian about Lin and Algerian boxer Imane Khelif being cleared to compete in the Olympic Games in Paris this year despite having failed gender eligibility tests at the International Boxing Association Women’s World Boxing Championships in New Delhi last year.
“What will it take to end this insanity? A female boxer left with life-altering injuries? A female boxer killed?” Rowling wrote.
Photo: Chen Chih-chu, Taipei Times
Hergie Bacyadan of the Philippines, who identifies as a man, but fights in women’s competitions — including in Paris in the under-75kg category — said that athletes with XY chromosomes should not be allowed to compete in women’s boxing, although they should be permitted to spar with other female fighters.
Lin and Khelif were granted permission to compete in Paris by the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
Former world featherweight champion Barry McGuigan also weighed in on the reaction to Lin and Khelif being allowed to compete.
“It’s shocking that they were actually allowed to get this far, what is going on?” McGuigan wrote on X.
Sports Administration Director-General James Cheng (鄭世忠) said that Lin secured the right to compete in Paris after winning gold at the 2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, which was held last year because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Lin has been subjected to doping and other tests just as other athletes have and did not encounter any issues, Cheng said.
“These discriminatory remarks might be strategically placed in the news media to distract Lin,” he said. “We understand that athletes have the right to speak up for themselves, but they might do so without having a full grasp of the details of the situation.”
The IOC on Monday said in a statement that “all athletes participating in the boxing tournament of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 comply with the competition’s eligibility and entry regulations, as well as all applicable medical regulations.”
Lin is qualified to compete because the Asian Olympic Games Medical Committee conducted a complete set of tests during the Asian Games, Cheng said.
Cheng said that he has asked Lin’s coach to help boost her morale ahead of her first bout today.
“We hope that people would continue to support and cheer for our athletes while they are competing in Paris,” he said.
Lin underwent a series of tests after returning from New Delhi last year, with the results not a bar to competing at the Asian Games in October last year.
IOC spokesman Mark Adams told reporters in Paris on Tuesday that everyone competing in the women’s category was in compliance with the eligibility rules.
“They [Lin and Khelif] are women in their passports and it is stated that is the case,” Adams said. “They are eligible by the rules of the [International Boxing] Federation, which were set in 2016, and which worked for Tokyo, too, to compete as women, which is what they are. And we fully support that.”
Lin lives in New Taipei City’s Yingge District (鶯歌).
New Taipei City Councilor Cho Kuan-ting (卓冠廷), who represents the district, yesterday said that he had the privilege of getting to know Lin, her mother and other relatives over the past few years.
“Lin is registered as a female on her birth certificate. The test result from last year was not even about chromosomes,” Cho said. “It took her years of hard work to get to where she is today, and we should applaud and cheer for her enthusiastic and explosive performance in the boxing ring. She has proven herself to be the pride of Taiwan.”
“The Olympic Games should be a platform where top athletes compete, rather than bullying one another,” he said. “Let’s treasure and support Lin.”
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