Olympics chief calls unexpected press conference to defend Imane Khelif and Lin Yu-Ting's participation in women's boxing as he insists they were 'born as women, raised as women and have female passports'

Olympics leader Thomas Bach has deed backmost successful nan boxing gender statement that has engulfed nan Games - declaring that some athletes astatine nan centre of nan large wind meet 'the clear meaning of a woman'.

Algeria's Imane Khelif and Taiwan's Lin Yu-Ting were cleared to compete successful nan female conception successful Paris contempt being disqualified from past year's World Championships aft reportedly failing gender tests, pinch nan resulting furore threatening to overshadow nan competition.

Both were victorious successful their opening bouts, pinch Khelif - who fights later connected Saturday - progressing successful her welterweight conflict pinch Angela Carini aft nan tearful Italian withdrew conscionable 46 seconds in, later saying she discontinue 'to sphere my life'.

The rumor has sparked a polarised world debate. But Bach, who made an unexpected quality astatine a property convention connected Saturday morning, deed retired astatine nan 'hate speech' aimed astatine some athletes and added he had nary problems pinch their participation.

'To put an extremity (to nan row) to it is much up to you than us,' he told reporters. 

'We are talking astir women's boxing. We person 2 boxers who are calved arsenic a woman, who were raised arsenic women, who person passport arsenic female who person competed for galore years arsenic women. This is nan clear meaning of a woman. There was ne'er immoderate uncertainty astir them being a woman.'

Bach besides claimed nan IOC was moving wrong nan only model disposable to it.

'What we spot now is that immoderate want to ain nan meaning of who is simply a woman,' nan German said. 

'I tin only induce them to travel up pinch a scientific-based caller meaning of who is simply a female and really tin personification born, raised, who competed arsenic a female not beryllium considered a woman. If they travel up pinch thing we are fresh to look into it but we will not return portion successful a politically-motivated taste war. Allow maine to opportunity what is going connected successful this discourse successful societal media pinch each this dislike speech, aggression and abuse, fuelled by this schedule is wholly unacceptable.'

The IBA, which is efficaciously astatine warfare pinch nan IOC, person grounded to supply clear detail, different than to opportunity that some grounded gender tests which were carried retired aft concerns were raised.

The determination to expel nan boxers was made by nan IBA, which is led by a Russian, and which was stripped of its domiciled arsenic organiser of nan Olympics title amid concerns complete governance.

When asked if nan furore was nan consequence of a Russian disinformation run aimed astatine destabilising nan Games, Bach responded: 'What we person seen from nan Russian broadside and successful peculiar from nan IBA, whose nickname we had to retreat for galore reasons, they person undertaken measurement earlier these Games pinch a defamation run against France, against nan Games, against nan IOC.'

Bach added: 'They person made a number of comments successful this respect which I do not want to repeat. If you want to person an thought astir nan credibility of accusation coming from this non-recognised federation I tin only propose you look into nan comments they person made precocious and make your ain judgement.'

Bach was later asked why nan IOC would not reintroduce gender testing, and whether nan IOC would let DSD athletes and trans-women to complete if it said connected their passports that they were female. DSD is simply a uncommon information antecedently known arsenic disorders of activity improvement aliases 'intersex' conditions, which affects betwixt 0.05 and 1 per cent of nan population. It is usually diagnosed astatine commencement erstwhile a baby's genitalia whitethorn not beryllium obvious. Some whitethorn beryllium calved pinch female genitalia but person nan antheral XY chromosome, arsenic good arsenic hidden testicles.

'We are not talking astir trans issue,' Bach said. 'This is astir a female taking portion successful a woman's event.'He added that this was 'not a DSD case' but IOC officials later said he had misspoken and had meant to opportunity 'trans' successful what appeared to beryllium a important blunder. 

'This is astir a female taking portion successful a woman's competition,' Bach said. 'I deliberation I person explained this galore times. I would for illustration to inquire each and everybody to respect these women. To respect them arsenic women, to respect them arsenic quality beings and not them coming anyplace adjacent to nan disorder which immoderate want to create.'