Aussie Olympic boxer Harry Garside reveals fear is gripping his female teammates as they call out ‘biologically male’ Iman Khelif’s ‘dangerous’ 46-second demolition of Angela Carini

Australian fighter Harry Garside has revealed his female teammates are “quite scared” after Algerian fighter Iman Khelif’s “dangerous” and highly controversial 46-second victory over Italy’s Angela Carini at the Paris Olympics.

His comments come after Australian boxer Marissa Williamson Pohlman slammed the International Olympic Committee over the scandal.

The women’s 66kg class attracted worldwide attention after the IOC confirmed that two boxers who were disqualified from last year’s world championships for failing a gender eligibility test would be allowed to fight in Paris.

Khelif (66 kg) and Taiwan’s Lin Yu-ting (57 kg) were disqualified from the International Boxing Association (IBA) world championships due to integrity concerns.

The IBA reported that chromosome testing showed both athletes had XY chromosomes, which is normally the case in males, while females have XX chromosomes.

Carini abandoned her fight against Khelif, fearing for her safety after suffering a suspected broken nose. She knelt and told her opponents: ‘It’s not fair’.

“I’ve never been hit so hard in my life. It’s up to the IOC to judge,” Carini said after the match.

Khelif, a successful amateur who won a silver medal at the 2022 world championships, is not transgender and reportedly does not identify as intersex – a term used for people with characteristics that do not fit conventional ideas of what it means to be male or female.

The IOC defended its decision, saying the athletes had been competing in the women’s category for years and were victims of an arbitrary decision by the IBA when they were suspended.

Khelif (left) made light work of Italy’s Angela Carini, beating her in 46 seconds in their round of 16 fight at the Paris Olympics (pictured)

Carini was left in tears after the match with a suspected broken nose, and later said she had never been hit so hard

Garside has now called on the IOC to listen to the female fighters in Paris and ensure that the competition is safe and fair for all boxers, saying fears are growing among the women on the team.

“It’s a very, very difficult conversation, I find it very difficult to comment on a topic like this,” he told KIIS FM’s Kyle & Jackie O show on Friday.

‘All I can do is ask the women on my team what their thoughts are and trust them, because I respect and love my teammates dearly.

“I want them to be safe and have a level playing field. A lot of girls are quite scared, a lot of them don’t think it’s fair.

‘As a man I find it difficult to comment on this, but I have to respect and honor the opinions of my teammates.

“If they think it’s unfair, then I think we need to listen to the women in the division and what they really think about it.”

Australian star Harry Garside (pictured) wants the IOC to listen to female boxers amid controversy over the two fighters’ participation

Garside also had sympathy for Khelif, but stressed that there should be a level playing field for all fighters.

“It’s difficult because if the Algerian boxer was born like this, then you have to put yourself in his shoes,” he said.

“Like I said, I just have to listen to my female athletes and their opinions.

“Because I care about them, I want them to be safe and have the best chance on a level playing field.”

His teammate Marissa Williamson-Pohlman, who fights in Khelif’s division, said the Algerian’s DNA tests should be made public and that any decision should be based on the safety of all female boxers.

“It’s just speculation at this point, of course. There’s supposedly DNA testing that shows Imane is XY,” Williamson-Pohlman said from Paris.

So if that’s the case, [firstly]come forward with it and acknowledge it and, [secondly]”The IOC should intervene because if you try to make it fair for one person, you make it unfair for many others.”

Australian fighter Marissa Williamson-Pohlman (pictured) wants her DNA data made public so decisions can be made about the safety of female boxers.

Australian boxing captain Caitlin Parker said she found the Olympics’ approval of two boxers who failed gender testing “incredibly dangerous”.

“I don’t agree with them being allowed to participate in sports, especially combat sports. It can be incredibly dangerous,” Parker said.

‘It’s not that I’ve never sparred with men before. But you know it can be dangerous for combat sports and it needs to be seriously investigated.

‘Yes, biologically…genetically they will have more advantages.

‘I really hope the organizations get their act together so that boxing can remain in the Olympics.

“It’s the oldest Olympic sport. Women’s boxing was only introduced in 2012 and I want to see it for the next 100, 200 years.”