The Bulgarian Olympic Committee is once again raising the issue of strict adherence to gender equality in the Olympic Games, according to an official statement from the BOC to the media. The reason for our concern is the participation in the women's boxing tournament at the Paris Games of Imane Khelif from Algeria in the 66 kg category and Lin Yu Ting from Chinese Taipei in the 57 kg category, who previously failed gender tests and were suspended from participating in women's boxing tournaments at the world level, but are now inexplicably registered in the women's program of the Olympic Games in Paris.

On this occasion, the Secretary General of the BOC, Belcho Goranov, and the chief physician of our Olympic delegation, Dr. Stefan Strugarov, met as early as July 27 with Prof. Dr. Roald Bahr, chairman of the Paris 2024 Group of the IOC Medical and Scientific Commission. Dr. Jane Thornton, who has been appointed as the new Scientific and Medical Director of the IOC, was also present at the meeting. Dr. Bahr explained that the two athletes were admitted to the Paris Games, complying with all rules and meeting all criteria, and that the IOC has no practice and will not conduct gender tests as long as the passport states 'female' gender. For its part, the BOC stated that it wants to file an official complaint about the case, to which Dr. Bahr replied that such a complaint would not be honored, but if it is insisted upon, it should be addressed to the IOC, something the BOC intends to do.

At the said meeting, the BOC once again expressed disagreement with the participation of the two aforementioned athletes in the women's Olympic tournament at the Paris Games and voiced its concern about the possible negative consequences in the absence of a reaction.

We are firmly resolved to defend the rights not only of Bulgarian athletes but of all female competitors who will be potentially disadvantaged by the participation of representatives of the other sex in women's competitions. In addition, we express our concern for the health of the female competitors, as it is scientifically proven that men's punches are much stronger than women's and can lead to severe injuries and permanent trauma.

The Bulgarian Olympic Committee hopes that this statement will lead to a reaction from those responsible for the organization and fair conduct of the boxing tournament at the Olympic Games in Paris.