The news conference had been billed as an effort by international boxing authorities to clear up the reasons they banned two athletes from a women’s competition last year, and a chance to shed crucial light on what has become the biggest controversy at the Paris Olympics.
Instead, the gathering started 90 minutes late, then veered into the chaotic almost immediately.
And when it ended about two hours later, almost nothing about the controversy had been clarified at all.
The head of the International Boxing Association, an organization no longer recognized by the International Olympic Committee to oversee the sport at the Games, had promised answers about why the organization excluded the two boxers, Imane Khelif of Algeria and Lin Yu-ting of Taiwan.
Instead, appearing on a giant video screen from a room decorated with religious iconography, the association’s Russian president, Umar Kremlev, delivered wild accusations, personal attacks and employed questionable language when detailing the two women's cases.
Persons:
Imane, Lin Yu, Umar Kremlev
Organizations:
Paris, International Boxing Association, International Olympic Committee, Games
Locations:
Algeria, Taiwan, Russian