Lin secures medal amid eligibility row

2 months ago 23
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Taiwanese boxer Lin Yu-ting became the second boxer at the centre of a gender eligibility row to secure a medal at the Paris Olympics as she reached the semi-finals of the women's featherweight division.

The 28-year-old beat Bulgarian Svetlana Staneva by unanimous decision.

A visibly frustrated Staneva, 34, left the arena making a cross with her fingers, shouting "no, no".

A scrappy fight threatened to boil over at times with Staneva regularly complaining about Lin's use of elbows.

Before the bout, the Bulgarian Boxing Federation said it "strongly opposed" Lin's participation.

Like Algerian welterweight Imane Khelif who progressed on Saturday, Lin is competing in Paris despite being banned from last year's World Championships by the International Boxing Association (IBA).

The fighters were reported to have failed gender eligibility tests at the Worlds, a situation which has sparked huge controversy.

Lin will face Brazil's 2023 Pan American Games champion Jucielen Romeu or Turkey's Esra Yildiz Kahraman in Wednesday’s semi-finals.

Even if she loses she will take home a bronze medal.

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