Hungary’s Anna Luca Hamori expressed pride after competing in a “tough fight” in the women’s 66kg quarter-finals, where she lost to Imane Khelif, one of the boxers at the centre of the gender controversy at the Olympics.

Khelif and fellow boxer Lin Yu-ting’s participation at Paris 2024 has attracted scrutiny after they were disqualified from last year’s World Championships for failing to meet gender eligibility criteria.

On Thursday, Algeria’s Khelif won in just 46 seconds, with opponent Angela Carini later saying she had “never felt a punch like this”. Khelif claimed her second straight win in the competition on Saturday after beating Hamori, meaning she is all but certain of a medal and will now face Janjaem Suwannapheng in the semi-finals on Tuesday night. Speaking afterwards, Hamori said: ‘I’m very proud of myself because I had to fight.

‘It was a tough fight, but I think I did everything I wanted to do before the fight. I think it was a good fight, I’m very proud of myself and I’m very grateful to be here. ‘It was a very good competition for me, it was my childhood dream. I’m very happy.

‘I wish my opponents and everyone else good luck in the final and I’m very grateful to the coaches, the Hungarian team, my family and everyone who supported me. Thank you everyone.’

With Algerian fans cheering on at the North Paris Arena, Khelif tested his opponent with a series of powerful punches. Hamori responded with a few good shots, including a strong right hook in the second round, but Khelif still controlled the fight with some good body combinations. The Algerian landed another hard punch to Hamori’s face in the third round before winning by unanimous decision.