Archive September 5, 2025

A Nigerian female boxing player who missed a deadline for a new genetic sex test was told by BBC Sport that it was “heartbreaking.”

Blessing Oraekwe, who had been scheduled to compete in the 75 kg category, claimed World Boxing should pay compensation to cover the costs of her team’s erroneous journey to the UK.

According to the international body for amateur boxing, its gender eligibility requirements for women starting the event, which officially opened on Thursday, will apply to all female competitors.

It claimed that its athletes had been “punished for a bureaucratic failure and a policy that was communicated far too late.”

Then it became clear that three of Nigeria’s women’s team’s three fighters from five different countries had been barred.

Oraekwe remarked, “I feel so depressed.

My intention was to dominate the ring and steal the gold for my country, which was heartbreaking. I am aware of how much work went into this.

World Boxing refutes the criticism, saying that national federations will be in charge of testing because they have the closest connections to their boxers, have the best access to their fighters, and are best equipped to oversee the testing process.

It stated that all federations had been informed on August 21 that any results from sex testing that were submitted after September 1 would be considered “unacceptable” and that any athletes who entered the official draw and competition would be in danger of losing.

Teams were instructed to take into account their arrival time if testing was needed once in the UK.

Officials in Nigeria claimed Oraekwe and two of her team-mates had been tested in Leeds on Monday following their arrival in the UK, but they had not received their results until Thursday evening, when they had already been barred.

Oraekwe remarked, “They brought the tests late. We have spent a lot of money, so I only want to ask that World Boxing make up for our lack of success. World Boxing has received requests for comment, according to the source.

The French boxing federation also sent its five-member women’s team to the Leeds lab on Monday because sex tests are prohibited in France without a medical prescription.

It claimed on Wednesday that it had learned with stupefaction and indignation that the fighters would not be able to fight because, in spite of the assurances that World Boxing had given us, the laboratory they had referred to was unable to deliver the results on time.

In response, it stated, “Our athletes as well as those from other nations have been caught in this trap and excluded.”

Maelys Richol, a French fighter, stated to BBC Sport that she was “really upset about the situation.”

She continued, “I didn’t think it would turn out this way when I first arrived here.” We’ve been preparing for the World Championships for almost a year. And it’s difficult to learn that the day before.

The tests, according to World Boxing, were introduced to ensure safety and fairness in the women’s boxing competition.

We’re sympathetic because we know every boxer spends the night in the gym, according to Mike McAtee, acting secretary general of World Boxing.

However, boxing requires strict rules, as stated. Boxers should be protected from themselves and that our health and safety are paramount.

We gave plenty of notice, but we’re sympathetic to boxers, coaches, and federations who prepared and were unable to participate for any reason.

This is the only way to ensure that our athletes compete safely and competitively.

“We can always learn from our perspective,” he said. After that, we’ll examine how we can improve our organization so that our members can receive testing even if they are not permitted to do so in their own country.

The organization’s governing body declined to disclose whether any fighters who took the tests had failed.

Imane Khelif, an Algerian boxer, appealed the introduction of the genetic sex test last week to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

Due to alleged failure of gender eligibility tests, Khelif and Taiwanese boxer Lin Yu-ting were exempt from the 2023 World Championships by previous world champion, the International Boxing Association (IBA).

Khelif and Lin are not competing in this year’s competition.

The pair won gold medals at the 2024 Paris Olympics after being permitted to compete by the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

If their passports indicated that they were female, competitors were admitted to the women’s division in Paris, according to the IOC.

Following the IBA’s suspension for failing to implement reforms, boxing underwent a significant reorganization in recent years.

The biggest names in sport and entertainment join host Kelly Somers for provocative and in-depth discussions about their favorite sport on the new series The Football Interview.

We’ll explore mindset and motivation, and talk about defining moments, career highs and personal reflections. The player behind the player is revealed in the football interview.

Lucy Bronze is England’s most decorated female footballer.

Bronze has represented the Lionesses at seven significant tournaments and has won 140 titles twice.

The right-back featured in every game in the successful Euro 2022 campaign – and again three years later as England retained their crown in Switzerland.

Bronze was a member of Chelsea’s elite squad last year and has won five Champions League titles, four of which were women’s.

Lucy Bronze: I guess it has changed throughout the years. It was everything to me when I was younger. I maybe put a bit too much on it. To be honest, I’ve never seen it as a job, but what it means to me has changed. There is football as in the football that I do, and there is the football that I am a part of, which is the big picture. That is now very important to me.

KS: Your career has gone in parallel with the growth of women’s football. You initially seemed to be playing football, but it now seems like there is a little movement.

LB: I always say I am so fortunate that my career has been on the same trajectory as women’s football in England. I had my moment in 2015, too. It was also the moment for England football and the WSL was kicking off. In line with my career, the stage and the football are getting bigger and bigger each tournament. I have always felt quite lucky to be on the same journey as women’s football.

What was the first time you played the game, KS?

LB: I played with my big brother – that’s why I started. When I was younger, people would ask, “Is his sister coming? ” And he would be like: ‘ Yeah she is, and she’s going to be on my team because she is good. ‘ He never complained about it. He would never let me win anything – if I won it was because I earned it. However, because my family and my brother were two of the best examples of it, I never had to face the barriers that “girls can’t play” or “it’s not girls’ football.”

KS: Who had a big impact on your career football-wise?

LB: My first coach at Alnwick Town was Ray Smith. When I was in the boys ‘ team, he was a painter and decorator, then helped with the team on the weekends. Just your neighborhood volunteer for grassroots football. And at 12, the FA were like, ‘ Lucy can’t play in the boys ‘ team any more. It is included in the regulations. My mum was like, ‘ Well, she’s got nowhere else to go. She cannot be taken anywhere by us. We can’t afford to take her anywhere’. Ray then approached my mother and said, “Please find Lucy a team; she’ll play for England one day.” At 12 years old.

What has changed your career, specifically? I’m almost wondering if maybe that conversation is it?

Going to America was a huge turning point for me, LB. When my mum Googled women’s football, the USA came up. The USA was the country with all the women’s football titles, including Mia Hamm, the World Cup, and the Olympic champions. So she was like, ‘ OK, let’s go’. So she said, “Let’s go to the States next summer,” to the entire family. We’ll save up, and if this is your dream, we’re going to take you, and we’re going to see if it’s a possibility. ‘ Like Beckham, this is from Bend’s era. So it was a hot topic at the time, going to America. When the soccer coach there saw me play, he said, “When she’s old enough, she should come back and receive a scholarship.” So I went back because England rejected me. I only spent a year in America before returning to school, which was the biggest turning point.

KS: Talk to me about England rejecting you…

LB: If I could relive a moment just to feel the moment again, I think it would be 2015 playing in the World Cup. It was my second tournament, but it was my first time participating, and I took over Alex Scott’s starting position in the fourth game. I scored a really good goal, and England went through, and I always say that was the moment my career was like, ‘ I’ve arrived’.

KS: You might have chosen some summertime games. When we think of Lucy Bronze and Euro 2025, we think ‘ My goodness, she won a major tournament with a broken leg’. What on earth is that, exactly?

LB: I just knew I was in pain. I had been experiencing pain for almost a month, and I was unable to identify what it was. It wasn’t making sense and people were like, ‘ It can’t be broken… you won’t be able to play… you’d be in too much pain’. Then I mentioned it to the England doctor, who has known me for ten years, and he said, “You’re telling me you’re in pain, that makes no sense to me.” We need to check this’. When did we learn the information? I think finding out was a relief because I knew what it was, but the first game I had to play with it, I was like, ‘ Now that I know this is a bit weird’. I wasn’t in training when the prep camps started. and people were like, ‘ Why are you not in training? ‘ and I was like, “I’ve got a broken leg, but I’ll be fine.” Don’t worry about me. “I’ll play,”

KS: In the quarter-final penalty shootout against Sweden, you weren’t one of the first penalty takers. Do you want to bring one?

LB: We get asked before the tournament which penalty would we be happy to take. And I’m always like, “Whatever you want me to do, whatever you want me to do, I will do that.” If it’s first, last whatever’. We typically practice penalties at the end of training, but because of my leg, I never was. So I was seventh. I was anticipating that I wouldn’t want to take one, so I spent the entire time cheering on the girls and keeping them focused. I’m just trying to give them my energy and confidence because in my head, I didn’t think I was going to take one.

KS: But you didn’t pay the penalty as you would have expected…

LB: Well it wasn’t the best penalty shootout, we all knew that, and there were nerves. I recall glancing down and thinking, “Wow, this team has so many young players!” So when I did have to take the penalty I was like, ‘ I’ve got this’.

What thoughts did you have when you completed the tournament once more as you did it?

LB: The English side of the family is represented by my mother’s maiden name. The people I am closest to on my mum’s side are my nan, my auntie and obviously my mum. The Tough women are the three main women. My auntie was a policewoman and my mum was a maths teacher, so Tough by name, tough by nature. They share their experiences with their jobs and how they were able to succeed, particularly as a woman. I have been brought up by that. Yes, I have my name, but I also have the tough women I’ve known. I had no other option but to be like that.

Your father is Portuguese, KS. Do you consider yourself half Portuguese?

LB: My only birth in England was due to my mother’s father’s passing the day before. So we flew back to England and I was born on the day of his funeral. In the end, we decided to stay in England, but that never happened. We used to go back to Portugal every single time we had a break. You’re going to Portugal again, the students in the class said. ‘. We spent a lot of our Christmases, summers, and half-terms there. We spent a lot of time in Portugal growing up.

You are a member of the Professional Footballers’ Association board because you are optimistic about the game’s future. You give back quite a lot…

LB: I try to. I got to a certain point, my mum said to me:” When you say something, people listen. I don’t think I realized that until I was a shy girl, but my mother said, “They’ll listen to you, you can speak up now,” when I was in my 20s. “I put myself forward for every player board known to women’s football. And why not, I only want to assist people.

KS: Is there any one example of you going out your way to help someone?

LB: I gave the GB deaf football team £10, 000 for their training kit as well as the nutrition and other supplies because they were struggling to raise money for the Deaf Olympics in November.

KS: Why did you want to do that?

LB: That I am overly driven or too arrogant or too focused.

KS: Do some people find you haughty?

LB: I think they did maybe when I was younger, but it’s like me being so focused. I’ve mentioned that being autistic makes you feel like you can solve problems or problems more quickly. I have always been good at that and not very good at slowing down for other people to get on the same page as me. Sometimes it comes across incorrectly, perhaps as a result of my being a little bullish, but it’s just me wanting to help. I can give you the solution, and I understand now that’s not what people always want, but maybe that has had me misunderstood a lot.

KS: You were so open about your autism diagnosis, and the response was incredible. Did that surprise you?

The biggest names in sport and entertainment join host Kelly Somers for provocative and in-depth discussions about their favorite sport on the new series The Football Interview.

We’ll explore mindset and motivation, and talk about defining moments, career highs and personal reflections. The player behind the player is revealed in the football interview.

Lucy Bronze is England’s most decorated female footballer.

Bronze has represented the Lionesses at seven significant tournaments and has won 140 titles twice.

The right-back featured in every game in the successful Euro 2022 campaign – and again three years later as England retained their crown in Switzerland.

Bronze was a member of Chelsea’s elite squad last year and has won five Champions League titles, four of which were women’s.

Lucy Bronze: I guess it has changed throughout the years. It was everything to me when I was younger. I maybe put a bit too much on it. To be honest, I’ve never seen it as a job, but what it means to me has changed. There is football as in the football that I do, and there is the football that I am a part of, which is the big picture. That is now very important to me.

KS: Your career has gone in parallel with the growth of women’s football. You initially seemed to be playing football, but it now seems like there is a little movement.

LB: I always say I am so fortunate that my career has been on the same trajectory as women’s football in England. I had my moment in 2015, too. It was also the moment for England football and the WSL was kicking off. In line with my career, the stage and the football are getting bigger and bigger each tournament. I have always felt quite lucky to be on the same journey as women’s football.

What was the first time you played the game, KS?

LB: I played with my big brother – that’s why I started. When I was younger, people would ask, “Is his sister coming? ” And he would be like: ‘ Yeah she is, and she’s going to be on my team because she is good. ‘ He never complained about it. He would never let me win anything – if I won it was because I earned it. However, because my family and my brother were two of the best examples of it, I never had to face the barriers that “girls can’t play” or “it’s not girls’ football.”

KS: Who had a big impact on your career football-wise?

LB: My first coach at Alnwick Town was Ray Smith. When I was in the boys ‘ team, he was a painter and decorator, then helped with the team on the weekends. Just your neighborhood volunteer for grassroots football. And at 12, the FA were like, ‘ Lucy can’t play in the boys ‘ team any more. It is included in the regulations. My mum was like, ‘ Well, she’s got nowhere else to go. She cannot be taken anywhere by us. We can’t afford to take her anywhere’. Ray then approached my mother and said, “Please find Lucy a team; she’ll play for England one day.” At 12 years old.

What has changed your career, specifically? I’m almost wondering if maybe that conversation is it?

Going to America was a huge turning point for me, LB. When my mum Googled women’s football, the USA came up. The USA was the country with all the women’s football titles, including Mia Hamm, the World Cup, and the Olympic champions. So she was like, ‘ OK, let’s go’. So she said, “Let’s go to the States next summer,” to the entire family. We’ll save up, and if this is your dream, we’re going to take you, and we’re going to see if it’s a possibility. ‘ Like Beckham, this is from Bend’s era. So it was a hot topic at the time, going to America. When the soccer coach there saw me play, he said, “When she’s old enough, she should come back and receive a scholarship.” So I went back because England rejected me. I only spent a year in America before returning to school, which was the biggest turning point.

KS: Talk to me about England rejecting you?

LB: If I could relive a moment just to feel the moment again, I think it would be 2015 playing in the World Cup. It was my second tournament, but it was my first time participating, and I took over Alex Scott’s starting position in the fourth game. I scored a really good goal, and England went through, and I always say that was the moment my career was like, ‘ I’ve arrived’.

KS: You might have chosen some summertime games. When we think of Lucy Bronze and Euro 2025, we think ‘ My goodness, she won a major tournament with a broken leg’. What on earth is that, exactly?

LB: I just knew I was in pain. I had been experiencing pain for almost a month, and I was unable to identify what it was. It wasn’t making sense and people were like, ‘ It can’t be broken… you won’t be able to play… you’d be in too much pain’. Then I mentioned it to the England doctor, who has known me for ten years, and he said, “You’re telling me you’re in pain, that makes no sense to me.” We need to check this’. When did we learn the information? I think finding out was a relief because I knew what it was, but the first game I had to play with it, I was like, ‘ Now that I know this is a bit weird’. I wasn’t in training when the prep camps started. and people were like, ‘ Why are you not in training? ‘ and I was like, “I’ve got a broken leg, but I’ll be fine.” Don’t worry about me. “I’ll play,”

KS: In the quarter-final penalty shootout against Sweden, you weren’t one of the first penalty takers. Do you want to bring one?

LB: We get asked before the tournament which penalty would we be happy to take. And I’m always like, “Whatever you want me to do, whatever you want me to do, I will do that.” If it’s first, last whatever’. We typically practice penalties at the end of training, but because of my leg, I never was. So I was seventh. I was anticipating that I wouldn’t want to take one, so I spent the entire time cheering on the girls and keeping them focused. I’m just trying to give them my energy and confidence because in my head, I didn’t think I was going to take one.

KS: But you didn’t pay the penalty as you would have expected…

LB: Well it wasn’t the best penalty shootout, we all knew that, and there were nerves. I recall glancing down and thinking, “Wow, this team has so many young players!” So when I did have to take the penalty I was like, ‘ I’ve got this’.

What thoughts did you have when you completed the tournament once more as you did it?

LB: The English side of the family is represented by my mother’s maiden name. The people I am closest to on my mum’s side are my nan, my auntie and obviously my mum. The Tough women are the three main women. My auntie was a policewoman and my mum was a maths teacher, so Tough by name, tough by nature. They share their experiences with their jobs and how they were able to succeed, particularly as a woman. I have been brought up by that. Yes, I have my name, but I also have the tough women I’ve known. I had no other option but to be like that.

Your father is Portuguese, KS. Do you consider yourself half Portuguese?

LB: My only birth in England was due to my mother’s father’s passing the day before. So we flew back to England and I was born on the day of his funeral. In the end, we decided to stay in England, but that never happened. We used to go back to Portugal every single time we had a break. You’re going to Portugal again, the students in the class said. ‘. We spent a lot of our Christmases, summers, and half-terms there. We spent a lot of time in Portugal growing up.

You are a member of the Professional Footballers’ Association board because you are optimistic about the game’s future. You give back quite a lot…

LB: I try to. I got to a certain point, my mum said to me:” When you say something, people listen. I don’t think I realized that until I was a shy girl, but my mother said, “They’ll listen to you, you can speak up now,” when I was in my 20s. “I put myself forward for every player board known to women’s football. And why not, I only want to assist people.

KS: Is there any one example of you going out your way to help someone?

LB: I gave the GB deaf football team £10, 000 for their training kit as well as the nutrition and other supplies because they were struggling to raise money for the Deaf Olympics in November.

KS: Why did you want to do that?

LB: That I am overly driven or too arrogant or too focused.

KS: Do some people find you haughty?

LB: I think they did maybe when I was younger, but it’s like me being so focused. I’ve mentioned that being autistic makes you feel like you can solve problems or problems more quickly. I have always been good at that and not very good at slowing down for other people to get on the same page as me. Sometimes it comes across incorrectly, perhaps as a result of my being a little bullish, but it’s just me wanting to help. I can give you the solution, and I understand now that’s not what people always want, but maybe that has had me misunderstood a lot.

KS: You were so open about your autism diagnosis, and the response was incredible. Did that surprise you?

According to Wayne Rooney, England manager Thomas Tuchel shouldn’t be let down by “nonsense” World Cup qualifiers.

In Group K over the next five days, The Three Lions will host Andorra and travel to Serbia.

In Tuchel’s first three competitive games, England defeated Albania 2-0, Latvia 3-0, and Andorra 1-0.

On his BBC podcast, The Wayne Rooney Show, Rooney claimed, “I think he’s a top manager.”

“He might have a little bit of stick about how England played,” he said. Those games are utter nonsense.

You arrive, and you are certain that England will prevail. You have to break down the 10 men who are seated behind the ball, which is difficult when playing against any team.

Between 2003 and 2018, Rooney has won 120 goals in his country.

“I grew to enjoy playing for England.” You know England will win, but watching them win some games can be a little boring. You enjoy it the most when you enter the tournament, he said, “of course.”

“The last few games were against Andorra or something similar.” It caused pain.

Thomas Tuchel probably wants a respectable game where he can show off his skills because I feel sorry for him. Really, it’s a no-win situation.

Tuchel’s England contract runs until the United States, Canada, and Mexico’s 2026 World Cup is over.

With three qualifiers to spare, they would be on the verge of clinching their place there with two victories in the following week.

Rooney continued, “You want to see England having to sit back and defend and tactically break down teams,” according to Thomas Tuchel.

That chance [will be] given to the better teams. I believe that he will perform exceptionally well for England. You don’t know whether they will win the World Cup, but I believe he has a chance, doesn’t he?