Caitlin Clark was named AP’s Female Athlete of the Year without much competition, but one person who received votes was the cause for much controversy over the summer.
A group of 74 sports journalists from The Associated Press and its members voted on the award. Clark received 35 votes, Olympic gymnast Simone Biles was second with 25.
But Olympic gold medalist boxer Imane Khelif was third, getting four votes.
Khelif qualified for the Paris Olympics, but Khelif’s gender was called into question following a disqualification from the 2023 championships before a gold medal bout over gender eligibility issues.
IBA President Umar Kremlev said the boxer had “XY chromosomes,” which are associated with biological males.
One boxer, Angela Carini, forfeited her bout against Khelif in Paris, saying “one punch hurt too much.”
Khelif won gold in Paris and wasn’t the only boxer to win a women’s gold who has been disqualified for failing gender eligibility tests. Taiwan’s Lin Yu-ting also won gold in another women’s weight class in Paris, prompting similar outrage.
The International Olympics Committee (IOC) defended Khelif and Yu-ting’s inclusion in the women’s events until the very end.
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“These two athletes were the victims of a sudden and arbitrary decision by the IBA. Towards the end of the IBA World Championships in 2023, they were suddenly disqualified without any due process,” the IOC said during the games.
Khelif later won gold. Khelif did not lose a single round on any scoreboards in Paris.
After Carini won her eighth women’s Italian title earlier this month, she claimed the victory was her “revenge.”
Khelif was the most Googled athlete of the year, largely in part due to the controversy.
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