The president of the International Olympic Committee has dismissed a gender controversy surrounding two boxers at the Paris Games as a Russian disinformation campaign. The controversy, which made headlines during the Games, stemmed from accusations by the International Boxing Association that the IOC allowed two female athletes to compete, despite being banned after a chromosome test. Thomas Bach, who departs from the IOC in June after 12 years in the job, characterised the IBA’s claims as “fake news” originating from Russia. "This was part of the many, many fake news campaigns we had to face from Russia before Paris and after Paris, " he said. Bach made the comments at a southern Greek seaside resort where his successor will soon be elected. The boxing competition in Paris was administered directly by the IOC, having stripped the IBA of its recognition in 2023 due to governance and financial concerns. The IBA, led by Russian businessman Umar Kremlev, has close ties to the Kremlin. The fallout that followed the IBA’s accusations dominated much of the coverage of the Games. Bach said several such campaigns happened before Paris, including what the IOC said at the time were repeated hacking attempts, as well as a prank call by a Russian group targeting him and pretending to be African Union Commission representatives. The dispute over the boxers would have been a non-issue were it not for the IBA, he said, given the two boxers had competed for years, including at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, with no problems. "It (the dispute) has nothing to do with the reality. These two female boxers were born as women, they were raised as women, they have been competing as women, they have been winning and losing as every other person." The IOC does not have a universal rule on the participation of transgender athletes or athletes with differences of sexual development (DSD), with each federation drawing up its own regulations. Russian athletes competed as neutrals in Paris after the Russian Olympic Committee was suspended for conducting Olympic elections in Ukrainian territories occupied following the Russian invasion in 2022. Bach also said he had no concerns about the preparations for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics, calling US President Donald Trump a strong supporter and promoter of the project. "Let the organising committee ... continue to work with President Trump and his administration because they have established very good relations," Bach said when asked what his advice to his successor would be regarding the LA Olympics and Trump. "The IOC should have confidence in their American partners and friends, and confidence that President Trump from the beginning was a strong supporter and promoter of the Olympic Games." Bach also said the sport of boxing, which had not been included in the initial LA 2028 programme due to the problems with the IBA, could soon get positive news regarding its inclusion. In February, the IOC provisionally recognised World Boxing as the new global body for the sport, paving the way for the sport's inclusion in Los Angeles. "I hope (the provisional recognition of World Boxing) will mean in very short term a very positive signal," Bach said. "I hope very much during these days here in Greece (during the IOC session) we can come to a decision."