Svetlana Staneva of Bulgaria made a double ‘X’ symbol to the crowd following her defeat to Lin Yu-ting at the Paris Olympics in a pointed dig at her opponent.

The Taiwanese boxer swept into the semi-finals of the women’s 57kg category event with ease, winning unanimously after a defensive display which visibly infuriated Staneva throughout. The Bulgarian called for Yu-ting to come forward on several occasions, especially in the final round, but her pleas fell on deaf ears as her opponent continued to use her long reach to run down the clock.

With tensions running high, Staneva added fuel to the fire by making a reference to the ongoing gender eligibility storm concerning Yu Ling. After the bout, she raised her two index fingers and crossed them which appeared to be indicating that she is a genetic female whilst shouting: “No, no.”

Yu-ting has falsely been accused of being a man, having previously been disqualified from competing at the women’s World Championships last year after failing to meet the International Boxing Association’s gender eligibility criteria. The IOC has since stripped the IBA of its recognition over reported finance issues.

After Yu-ting’s disqualification, Umar Kremlev, the president of the IBA told the TASS news agency she had XY chromosomes, which are mostly found in men. However, Kremlev’s claim has never been proven.

There have been suggestions from the IBA previously that Yu-ting’s testosterone levels exceeded their criteria, though they have not been proven at this stage either and doubts have been raised about the credibility of the tests. Thus, the IOC have stood by their decision to allow her to compete, as well as Algerian star Imane Khelif.

Staneva initially refused Yu-ting’s approach for a post-match embrace before then shaking hands with her opponent. She also opened the rope to allow Yu-ting to leave as a mark of respect.

Staneva then left the area without speaking to the press and therefore did not confirm the intentions behind her gesture. Her coach Borislav Georgiev told the Washington Post: “I’m not a medical person who should say if Lin could compete or not here, but when the test shows that he or she has the Y chromosome she should not be here.”