Angela Carini retired just 46 seconds into her bout against Irene Khelif and a lip-reader has revealed exactly what she said in the ring.
Carini's 2024 Olympic journey was ended less than a minute in the first-round against Algeria's Khelif with the win sparking major controversy across the entire world.
Khelif failed gender eligibility test in 2023 which resulted in her being disqualified from the 2023 World Championships but was cleared to compete in the Olympics by the International Olympic Committee.
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She landed huge punches on her Italian opponent which visibly dislodged Carini's headwear. After being rocked, Carini ultimately decided to throw in the towel after returning to her corner. She refused to shake her opponents hand after the bout had concluded.
Now, a lip reader has revealed what Carini said to her corner just seconds after deciding she could no longer compete.
Carini reportedly turned to her corner and said: "It hurt like hell", according to Gazzetta dello Sport. She was visibly emotional in the mixed zone after being eliminated from the competition.
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Despite the controversy surrounding the win, Carini refused to be drawn on the online backlash and claimed she withdrew from the fight as a result of suffering an injury.
She said on her decision to bow out of the fight: "I put an end to the match because after the second blow, after years of experience in the ring and a life of fighting, I felt a strong pain in my nose.
"I said 'that's enough' because [...] I could not bring the match to an end. So I thought, maybe it's better to put an end to the match."
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Khelif will be back in action on Saturday when she faces Hungary's Anna Luca Hamori in the next round.
Ahead of facing Khelif - who has lost nine times during her career - Hamori said: "I’m not scared. I don’t care about the press story and social media."
Marcus Banks