IMANE Khelif and Lin Yu-ting proved they can tune out the distractions during the entire Paris Olympics after being the last women standing in their respective divisions in the boxing tournament.
Khelif became the first Algerian woman to win a gold medal after dominating Yang Liu of China, 5-0, in the welterweight final on August 10, Manila time.
A day later, Lin followed suit after beating Polish Julia Szeremeta in the featherweight division title match.
The golden performances looked like strong messages to haters who questioned their gender.
After all, Khelif and Lin were two of the most talked-about athletes in the Paris Games after they were allowed to compete despite getting disqualified from the World Championships sanctioned by the International Boxing Association (IBA) last year following failed gender tests.
The IBA insisted in its ruling that Khelif and Lin were proven to have XY chromosomes in their DNA that suggested they were male.
But the International Olympic Committee (IOC) had long stripped the IBA of recognition and said Khelif and Lin’s disqualifications didn’t undergo due process.
The IOC also confirmed the boxers competing in the Paris Olympics have complied with regulations set by the organizing Paris Boxing Unit, which said the gender of an athlete is based on what’s stated on his/her passport.
And even before their 2023 disqualifications, Khelif and Lin have long participated as female boxers in the Olympics and other IBA-sanctioned tournaments.
What's up, doc?
Still, questions persist after both boxers ruled their respective divisions.
To shed light on the gender issue, we asked a doctor to give his insights.
Dr. Ronnie Fabian, a Filipino general practitioner based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, first laid the foundation of knowing gender through DNA.
“To be able for us to determine yung sex ng tao, mayroong dalawang set ng chromosomes: yung X and Y. So ideally, 'pag dalawa yung X chromosomes mo, babae yun. The moment na mayroon kang Y chromosome, it’s always a male,” he said.
But Fabian, a 2001 Bagong Bayani Award recipient, was quick to add that chromosomes are not absolute indicators, saying there are rare cases where females may possess XY chromosomes.
“Maraming syndromes actually yan eh,” he said before mentioning the most probable one. “Swyer syndrome yun. Usually, pinanganak silang babae, pero XY siya. Bihirang-bihira din yun. Ganun siguro ‘to.”
“Yung Swyer syndrome kasi, they look female, may functional na female genitalia, lahat, pero may features din siguro na konting masculine, parang ito,” he added.
To be clear, it is not yet known if Khelif and Lin have these genetic variations.
But being born female should be enough for them to be allowed to compete in the Olympics, according Fabian.
“Well, she was born female from the start. Kaya lang, siguro, pwede siyang hindi makapag-compete kung talagang yung sa testing nila, mayroong XY chromosome, they need to further investigate most likely,” he said.
“Kung titingnan mo yung hitsura, parang lalaki, ‘di ba? Pero yung Swyer syndrome, female siya, lahat may reproductive organs, kung minsan, ovaries siguro wala. They can still conceive by yung artificial dissemination, pero ang chromosome niya is XY,” he added.
Testosterone, the main male sex hormone, also doesn’t necessarily indicate gender, according to Fabian.
“Yung testosterone, pwede namang tumaas sa certain conditions eh. Kahit babae ka, pwedeng tumaas ang testosterone, gaya nung may tinatawag na PCOS o Polycistic Ovary Syndrome, kadalasan matataas ang testosterone level nun eh," he said.
“So hindi ibig sabihin 'pag elevated ang testosterone, male ka. No, hindi lang yun ang basis.”
Asked if having Sywer syndrome can give female athletes an unfair advantage over fellow ladies, Fabian doesn’t believe so.
“Most likely, hindi naman siguro. Ganun lang din naman yun. It will always depend on the training. Para bang any female boxer, ipa-compete mo sa hindi boxer na ordinary na lalake, tatalunin pa rin yung lalake," he said.
“Since, of course, they’re training, lahat nandun, physically, capable sila lahat. It does not mean siguro na mas malakas siya,” he ended.
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