Lin Yu-ting advances to gold-medal Olympic bout, excelling amid misconceptions about her gender

PARIS (AP) — Boxer Lin Yu-ting of Taiwan has advanced to the gold-medal bout in the women’s featherweight division, winning her third consecutive bout while dealing with widespread scrutiny regarding misconceptions about her gender at the Paris Olympics.

One day after welterweight Imane Khelif of Algeria reached her weight division’s final with a third straight victory in Paris, Lin defeated Esra Yildiz Kahraman of Turkey 5:0 on Wednesday night. Lin will fight for gold on Saturday.

Lin and Khelif have dominated all of their Olympic bouts despite the massive distractions created by the fallout from the Olympic-banished International Boxing Association’s decision last year to disqualify both fighters from the world championships for allegedly failing an eligibility test.

Both fighters have responded to this unwelcome spotlight by making two of the best tournament runs of their lengthy amateur careers. Just like Khelif, Lin has never been a dominant champion in her sport, but that hasn’t stopped many observers from casting both as unstoppable boxing machines during the Olympics because the IBA disqualified them last year.

In fact, the 28-year-old Lin is a veteran amateur boxer who won world championships in 2018 and 2022 during a solid decade at the top level of the sport. She is usually taller and more slender than her opponents, winning her bouts through solid technique and savvy use of her reach rather than power.

That's exactly how she beat Kahraman, who attempted to force a more physical fight while Lin patiently picked her apart mostly from distance for three rounds.

While Khelif gave an exclusive interview last weekend to SNTV, a sports video partner of The Associated Press, and then spoke briefly in the mixed zone after her semifinal victory Tuesday, Lin has made little public comment about those attempting to involve her in controversy.

But after Kahraman hugged Lin and held open the ropes to allow Lin to leave the ring in a typical boxing gesture of sportsmanship, Lin clapped and waved to the cheering crowd several times while leaving the floor.

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AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games