Vera Figner and Emma Peel react to the ABC TV coverage of the boxing scandal at the Paris Olympics
Friday 2nd August ABC TV News NSW 7pm
Nakari Thorpe, ABC presenter:
Amanda Shalala joins us now from Paris. And Amanda it wouldn’t be an Olympic Games without some sort of controversy. This time in the boxing ring.
Vera Figner:
‘Some sort of controversy’? That’s putting it mildly! This thing is big. Women’s sports are on the line.
Amanda Shalala, ABC reporter:
Yes, Nakari. Italy’s Angela Carini has withdrawn from her bout against Algeria’s Imane Khelif after just 46 seconds after receiving some heavy blows to the head. Now last year the International Boxing Association – which is no longer recognised as the sport’s governing body – disqualified Khelif and Taiwan’s Lin Yu-ting – who’s fighting today – from the world championship saying they did not meet the eligibility requirements for the women’s competition. The IOC, which is running the boxing here, has come out very strongly criticising the IBA, saying it made a sudden and arbitrary decision, and that these women are eligible to compete in the female category and that it’s saddened by the abuse these athletes have received. Of course, the sporting action continues here today, Australia hoping to add to its medal tally …
Vera Figner:
Wait, that’s it? Amanda’s not going to tell us any of the backstory?
Like how the IOC abandoned its disastrous ‘gender policy’ based on levels of testosterone? And instead told international federations for each and every sport to formulate their own criteria for eligibility for the women’s category? Which is what the IBA did? And she’s not going to tell us that the disqualification of Khelif and Lin was based on tests – scientific tests – showing they have XY chromosomes?
And that the only reason the IOC has for claiming the IBA’s decision was ‘sudden and arbitrary’ was because it was made during a championship? And Nakari’s not going to ask Amanda to explain intersex, DSDs and 5-ARD?
They’re not going to point to cases in other sports, like track and field? They’re not going to mention Caster Semenya? Or the three runners who took all the medals in the 800 metres at Rio? They’re not going to go into the sports that have – now – banned from the women’s comp anybody who’s undergone male puberty? What about that preposterous statement by the IOC that the ‘gender’ of athletes is ‘based on their passport’? When in many countries a man can get a passport that says ‘F’ pretty much by providing a stat dec? Isn’t Amanda going to report that? Isn’t Nakari going to –
Vera Figner:
Sacrebleu!
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Gogglebox was a reality TV show where participants watch and comment on popular television shows. The format originated in Britain and was adapted for Australia.
We’ve adapted the Gogglebox format to allow our faithful correspondents Vera and Emma discuss the ABC’s coverage of Olympic boxing.