A Bulgarian Boxer Protests Strongly After Being Eliminated by 'XY' Chromosome Athlete Lin Yu-ting

Bulgarian boxer Svetlana Staneva made a suggestive gesture after losing to Taiwan's Lin Yu-ting, who was previously eliminated from the World Boxing Championships 2023 for failing gender eligibility tests after presenting "XY" chromosomes.

After the fight, when the judges announced that Lin passed to the semifinal rather loosely, the Bulgarian fighter took off her gloves, pointed to herself and double-tapped her fingers in the shape of an X.

The Bulgarian's gesture, according to various international reports, is an apparent reference to her female chromosomes, questioning the fact that her Taiwanese opponent possessed a biological advantage by possessing chromosomes normally present in men. The Bulgarian also appeared to shout "no, no" after the fight, but no explanation or further context was offered as she passed through the media zone, where she walked at full speed without answering a single question from reporters. Lin, who does not speak English, also did not speak to the international press but did speak to the media back home, where she claimed she shut down her social media before the competition, likely aware of the controversy surrounding her acceptance into the Paris 2024 Olympics.

"I have received many messages of support. I haven't read them because I closed my social media. The whole population of Taiwan supports me, so I'm going to harness that strength to hopefully go all the way," Lin said.

Staneva's coach, on the other hand, addressed the controversy of these Games, rather tactfully questioning whether the system or the organization was correctly taking into account biological factors.

"I'm not a doctor, so I shouldn't say whether Lin should or shouldn't compete," Borislav Georgiev told the BBC. "But when the test shows that he or she has the Y chromosome, he or she shouldn't be here."

The situation frames the most recent controversy surrounding Lin Yu-ting and Algerian boxer Imane Khelif, who was also disqualified from the 2023 World Boxing Championships for failing gender eligibility tests. The situation has sparked outrage and a strong debate in the media and social media about women's sports, the safety of female fighters and also the challenges for people with biologically atypical conditions, such as Lin Yu-ting and Imane Khelif, who claim they were born female and have the right to compete in women's categories despite their biological advantage due to the production of higher chromosomes.

Despite all the commotion, the fact remains that Lin will face Turkey's Esra Yildiz Kahraman in Wednesday's semifinals.

Meanwhile, Algeria's Imane Khelif, who stole the media spotlight after qualifying for the semifinals, will do the same next Tuesday against Thailand's Janjaem Suwannapheng.

Both have already secured at least one medal for their countries.