After Italian boxer Angela Carini expressed regret and wanted to “apologize” to Imane Khelif, former ESPN writer Jemele Hill and South Carolina women’s basketball head coach Dawn Staley followed suit.
Carini said the controversy surrounding Khelif “makes me sad,” and she “respect[ed]” the IOC’s decision to let Khelif fight.
Khelif is considered to have male XY chromosomes and was barred from competing in the women’s world championships last year.
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Jemele Hill and Dawn Staley called out critics of Imane Khelif Friday. (Getty Images)
After Carini apologized, Hill said many others need to follow suit, and she wants Khelif to take further action.
“A lot of people need to apologize,” Hill, a writer for “The Atlantic,” wrote on X. “I hope Khelif sues some people over their reckless remarks. All this story did was expose ugliness, hatred, and transphobia. As Carini admitted here, she quit because she was upset she was gonna get her a– whooped and other folks turned it into something else.”
Staley caught wind of Hill’s post and added another comment.
“They also need to pray and be prayed for because…..the way their lives are set up pure hatred,” Staley wrote.
Algeria’s Imane Khelif (in red) gestures to Italy’s Angela Carini in the women’s 66-kilogram preliminaries round of 16 boxing match during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at the North Paris Arena in Villepinte Aug. 1, 2024. (Mohd Rasfan/AFP via Getty Images)
Hill replied that she “agree[d].”
Carini appeared to give Khelif the cold shoulder after the right. She said it was one of the things she regretted about the match.
“It wasn’t something I intended to do,” Carini said. “Actually, I want to apologize to her and everyone else. I was angry because my Olympics had gone up in smoke.”
Khelif will fight in the next round Saturday against Hungarian Luca Hamori.
The International Olympic Committee defended Khelif’s eligibility Thursday as the gender controversy heated up.
“These two athletes were the victims of a sudden and arbitrary decision by the IBA,” the IOC said of Khelif and Taiwan’s Lin Yu-Ting. “Towards the end of the IBA World Championships in 2023, they were suddenly disqualified without any due process.”
Algeria’s Imane Khelif, right, defeated Italy’s Angela Carini in their women’s 66-kilogram preliminary boxing match at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Thursday, Aug. 1, 2024, in Paris. (AP Photo/John Locher)
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According to IBA minutes available on its website, the decision was initially made by the IBA secretary general and CEO. The IBA Board only ratified it afterward and only subsequently requested that a procedure to follow in similar cases in the future be established and be reflected in the IBA Regulations. The minutes also say the IBA should “establish a clear procedure on gender testing.”
Fox News’ Ryan Gaydos contributed to this report.
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