Imane Khelif’s next opponent shares incendiary picture portraying boxer as a ‘beast’

Hungarian boxer Anna Luca Hamori says she is looking forward to taking on Imane Khelif – even if they are a man

A tough-talking Olympian who says she “can’t wait” to face gender row boxer Imane Khelif has poured fresh scorn on her opponent by sharing a picture portraying the Algerian as a beast.
Hungary’s Anna Luca Hamori, who had already said she is “not scared” of Khelif, shared an image on Instagram of a cartoon monster with horns toe-to-toe with Italy’s Angela Carini.
The picture, which was initially posted by another social media account, comes after she had already stirred up the furore around Hamori by saying: “If she or he is a man, it will be a bigger victory for me if I win.”
Hamori showed no sign of nerves as she spoke hours after Italy’s Angela Carini had been forced, after only 46 seconds, to abandon her fight as a result of a ferocious punch from Khelif. 
The bout has sparked a storm at the Games because the Algerian boxer had previously failed two sex tests, but Hamori says she is looking forward to facing Khelif.
“I don’t care about the stories, what is going on the social media right now,” says Hamori. “I just want to stay focused on myself and I know why I came here. I want to get a medal from the Olympic Games. So I don’t care about anything. I will go to the ring and I will get my win.”
Hamori’s demeanour was in sharp contrast with Carini’s on Thursday. A first punch from Khelif loosened the chinstrap on Carini’s headgear, before a second struck her on her chin and splashed blood over her shorts.
Carini, 25, was distraught in the aftermath, disclosing that she had feared for her life. Having crumpled to the canvas, she said, with tears streaming down her face: “I am heartbroken. I was told a lot of times that I was a warrior but I preferred to stop for my health. I have never felt a punch like this. After the second blow to the nose, I couldn’t breathe anymore. I went to my coach and said ‘enough’. It could have been the match of a lifetime, but I had to preserve my life as well in that moment.”
Hamori, however, expressed surprise that the Italian had conceded the fight so early. “It was Carini’s choice,” said the 23-year-old. “I don’t understand because I thought every boxer’s mind is the same like mine. Never give up. I know I won’t do this ever in my whole life.”
“I can’t wait for that fight,” she said of the upcoming 66kg bout at Arena Paris Nord on Saturday. “In my club at home I have only guys and male team-mates. It’s not new for me.”
There has been widespread and immediate condemnation of the International Olympic Committee, with Carini heard telling her corner during the fight: “Non è giusto” (“It’s not fair”).
Khelif was allowed to compete at these Paris Games despite being thrown out of last year’s world championships in Delhi for failing a testosterone test. Taiwan’s Lin Yu-ting, who fought on Friday, was disqualified for the same reason. 
Umar Kremlev, president of the International Boxing Association, said that DNA tests had “proved they had XY chromosomes and were thus excluded”. XY is the male chromosomal make-up, while female is XX.