Savannah Marshall has slammed the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and called for clarity after women's boxing left the Paris Olympics shrouded in controversy on Thursday. 

Algerian boxer Imane Khelif defeated Angela Carini in the opening round of the women's welterweight event in Paris after her Italian opponent abandoned the bout within 46 seconds. 

Khelif's participation in the games has been a source of contention given she was disqualified from the Women's World Boxing Championships last year. 

The Olympics website noted that Khelif had been disqualified by The International Boxing Association (IBA) hours before a gold medal bout against China's Yang Liu when her elevated levels of testosterone failed to meet the eligibility criteria.

Along with Taiwan’s Lin Yu-Tin, who is also competing in Paris, IBA president Umar Kremlev – who ran that competition - said that further DNA tests had ‘proved they had XY chromosomes’. In short, that they had been deemed ‘biologically male’.

However, Khelif was cleared by the IOC to compete in Paris, with the IBA, along with several celebrities, fighters and diplomatic figures hugely critical of this decision and its associated safety impacts, particularly after Thursday's fight.

'I just think it highlights Olympic boxing as a whole,' former two-weight world champion Marshall exclusively told Mail Sport.

'How can one athlete be told they can’t compete in the World Championships but then the IOC say it's OK to compete in the Olympics?

'It’s an absolute mess and should never have got to this point.'

Carini was left crying in the centre of the ring following the abrupt conclusion of the bout, claiming her withdrawal was necessary to 'preserve my life', after she explained how she had 'never felt a punch' like the one Khelif inflicted.

And Marshall, a former two-time Olympian, insisted she was concerned for Carini.

'100 per cent,' she added. 'Because I spar men and there's a massive difference in power between men and women.

'I've been hit by men and been hurt but I've never been hurt when I've been hit by a woman so I can really sympathise with her.'

But, despite this, Marshall also expressed her sympathies for the Algerian and claimed that, along with Carini, she had been let down by the IOC.

'How much scrutiny she’s come up against through this is awful, it’s disgusting,' she said.

'It’s all mixed messages online and you’re seeing people write that it was a man versus a female and that isn’t the case at all, she’s been born like that (as a female).

'She’s been beaten by plenty of females before and she’s not superhuman. It’s not like she’s injecting testosterone at insane levels.'

On the eve of Thursday's farce between Khelif and Carini, the IBA released a statement clarifying why the Algerian and Yu-Tin had been disqualified from last year's World Championship.

It cited a ‘meticulous’ review which ‘was extremely important and necessary to uphold the level of fairness and utmost integrity of the competition’.

The missive added that no testosterone examinations were held, rather ‘a separate and recognised test, whereby the specifics remain confidential’. That examination ‘conclusively indicated that both athletes did not meet the required necessary eligibility criteria and were found to have competitive advantages over other female competitors’.

The IBA said the ban was also based on tests conducted at the World Boxing Championships in 2022 and said – significantly – that Khelif withdrew an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, rendering the decision legally binding.

In a dig at the IOC, they ‘expressed concern over the inconsistent application of eligibility criteria by other sporting organisations, including those overseeing the Olympic Games’. ‘The IOC’s differing regulations on these matters raise serious questions about both competitive fairness and athletes’ safety,’ they added.

But, what does Marshall believe needs to be done to avoid situations like this happening again?

'I think it has to be a case of look, either females with these gender issues are allowed to compete, or not, it's as simple as that,' she says.

'Not one rule for one and another for another tournament.

'(Khelif) is well within her rights (to want to win the Olympics). I can imagine the abuse she’s already received to be shocking online but again it falls into the whole category of what’s right and what’s wrong.

'We need to have a set rule where we’re either allowed or not allowed (to compete).'

The controversy surrounding Khelif's victory is unlikely to abate any time soon - and it is something that will rear its head again when Yu-Ting competes on Friday.

For Marshall, whatever happens is firmly the responsibility of the IOC, and she insisted the Khelif-Carini incident is symptomatic of the state of boxing at the Olympics.

'She's (Yu-Ting) has qualified for the Olympics so as an athlete are the IOC going to strip her of that?,' she said. 'It's just an absolute mess.

'To take a stand women should really follow Carini but it is the Olympics and people want to become Olympic champions and change their lives forever. So are people going to make a stand? Probably not.

'The boxing has been an absolute shambles. There's been so many controversial decisions already and this has just added fuel to the fire.'