Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., is aiming to secure the equivalent of a gold medal for an Olympic athlete who was defeated by an opponent previously found to be ineligible based on gender criteria. Italian boxer Angela Carini participated in the 66-kilogram women’s division Olympic boxing match on Thursday but withdrew from the fight just 45 seconds in after being struck by her opponent, who was found to have male chromosomes.
Carini left the match against Algerian boxer Imane Khelif in tears, saying later: “I didn’t give up, but one punch hurt too much, and so I said enough.” Boebert told Fox, “Enough is enough,” adding that she set up a GiveSendGo campaign to raise $196,000, or the equivalent of what Italy pays their athletes for a gold medal. As of this writing, the campaign had raised nearly $25,000.
“It’s really unfortunate when women who have competed since they were little girls, trained since they were little girls, are forced to compete against a mediocre male athlete,” Boebert said in an exclusive interview with Fox News Digital. “I believe that Angela deserves better. She worked her entire life to reach the very top of her sport, and my heart goes out to her today. It was really devastating.”
Boebert pointed out that International Boxing Association President Umar Kremlev admitted Khelif was disqualified during the 2023 World Championships for not meeting gender eligibility standards. “Based on DNA tests, we identified a number of athletes who tried to trick their colleagues into posing as women. According to the results of the tests, it was proved that they have XY chromosomes. Such athletes were excluded from competition,” Kremlev said at the time.
Boebert told Fox that in allowing Khelif to compete, the Olympics “gave the green light that it’s OK for men to compete, even a physical competition, to the point where they’re hitting women. And this is not OK. It’s disgusting. And at what point are we going to say enough is enough and call for an end to this?… And it’s not OK when it’s on the world stage next, where women are being defeated by men.” She added that every dollar raised will go straight to Carini.