In Paris, Taiwanese boxer Lin Yu-ting won her first Olympic medal on Sunday in front of crowds chanting her name, just a day after Algerian boxer Imane Kherif did the same after days of online abuse and intense scrutiny over her participation.
Lin defeated Svetlana Kamenova-Staneva of Bulgaria in the women’s 57 kg quarterfinals, then won two consecutive bouts by unanimous decision to advance to the semifinals of the same weight class, ensuring her a shot at winning at least the bronze medal.
Lin and Kherif have become central figures in a conflict over gender identity and regulation in sports, with critics pointing to their disqualification from last year’s world championships for failing an unspecified eligibility test by the International Boxing Association for women to compete.
Lin defeated Shitra Turdibekova of Uzbekistan 5-0 in her first match.
In the women’s 57 kg class, two more quarterfinal matches were scheduled for Sunday before the semifinal matchups were decided.
