GENEVA — The International Boxing Association (IBA) announced on Monday that it plans to file criminal charges against the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in the United States, France, and Switzerland. The IBA claims that the IOC’s decision to allow female boxers Imane Khelif and Lin Yu-ting to compete and claim gold medals in Paris last year could warrant such action.
In a statement, the IBA, which is based in Switzerland, referenced an executive order regarding transgender athletes issued by former U.S. President Donald Trump as a basis for their proposed complaints. The IBA argued that Swiss law permits investigation into any actions that might threaten the safety of competition participants, and they plan to lodge similar complaints with the Attorneys General in France and the U.S.
The IBA, backed financially by the Russian state energy corporation Gazprom, has also committed to offering legal advice to female boxers wishing to pursue claims against IOC president Thomas Bach and other high-ranking Olympic officials. IBA president Umar Kremlev stated that Trump’s executive order, which seeks to exclude transgender athletes from women’s sports, supports the IBA’s mission to safeguard the integrity of female athletics.
This legal dispute is a continuation of the long-standing conflict between the IBA and the IOC, particularly between Kremlev and Bach. The IOC assumed control over boxing competitions during the last two Summer Olympics held in Tokyo and Paris. In response to the IBA’s latest legal moves, the IOC described it as merely another instance in a series of aggressive actions aimed at the IOC, stemming from its decision to strip the IBA of its recognition due to issues related to governance and financial transparency.
The IOC has maintained that Khelif and Lin, who were assigned female at birth and identify as women, adhered to all the necessary regulations to take part in the Olympic events, having also competed in Tokyo 2021 without securing medals. However, both athletes were disqualified from the IBA’s 2023 world championships, as the organization deemed they did not pass eligibility assessments.
The IOC firmly reiterated that the two women mentioned by the IBA are not transgender athletes, countering recent statements from Trump, who mistakenly referred to them as men and alleged without evidence that they had transitioned to win their gold medals.
Trump’s executive order titled “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports” seeks to prevent transgender athletes from participating in women’s events. The upcoming Summer Games in Los Angeles scheduled for July 2028 fall during Trump’s potential presidential term, and he has called upon the IOC to address what he deems “the absolutely ridiculous subject” of transgender inclusion in sports.
Major Olympic sports, including track and field, swimming, and cycling, have already implemented regulations in the past three years that exclude athletes who have experienced male puberty from participating in women’s competitions. Recently, World Athletics moved closer to enforcing additional stringent rules on this issue.
The IOC noted that the tournament rules concerning gender classifications in Olympic boxing remain largely unchanged since the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games; however, they cited the competition histories of both Khelif and Lin. This evidence was presented to assess whether these athletes possessed any significant performance advantages or posed additional safety risks compared to their fellow competitors in the women’s category.
