Lausanne, Switzerland, Jan 1 – Starting today, World Boxing activates a mandatory sex verification for male boxers, a regulatory shift aimed at safeguarding safety and fairness in the tournaments under its jurisdiction.
The measure, approved months ago, ceases to be a recommendation and becomes an unavoidable requirement to compete in events sanctioned by the organization recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). With this, the federation seeks to dispel eligibility doubts and reinforce sports integrity in an increasingly scrutinized global arena.
The protocol requires boxers over 18 years old to prove their sex through a PCR test—or an equivalent examination—capable of identifying specific genetic material.
Without certified results, access to the ring is denied. The rule applies regardless of rank or nationality: it covers all events under the World Boxing banner.
For women, the verification has been in effect since August 20 of last year, when its implementation was accelerated ahead of the World Championships held in Liverpool.
In the case of males, the organization then opted for a transitional period, encouraging national federations to begin testing before making it mandatory starting today.
World Boxing has defended the policy as a preventive barrier. It maintains that the objective is to protect athletes and provide equal competitive conditions, an argument aligned with the IOC’s stance on safety and fair play in high-performance sports.
The federation, founded in April 2023, received provisional IOC approval last February to organize Olympic boxing, following the suspension of the International Boxing Association (IBA) due to financial, administrative, and refereeing irregularities. Since then, it has accelerated reforms to gain credibility and stability.
This debate, however, has not been without controversy. The application of gender tests to female boxers was challenged at the Court of Arbitration for Sport by Algerian Imane Khelif, the Olympic champion in the 66-kilogram category in Paris, amid questions about her testosterone levels.
The IOC ratified that result, finding no evidence of gender transition or biological sex alterations. Today, with the extension of verification to male boxing, World Boxing places the issue back at the center of the regulatory ring, convinced that rules, like punches, must be clear and measurable.
(Taken from Prensa Latina)
