Taiwan Turns Against J.K. Rowling for Stirring Olympic Boxing Gender Controversy

The gloves are off in Taiwan, where government officials and citizens alike are furiously denouncing J.K. Rowling, after the Harry Potter author weighed in on the culture war overshadowing Olympic boxing.

Local politicians and journalists are taking jabs at Rowling, some Harry Potter fans have vowed to boycott her products, and social media users have defended Lin Yu Ting, the 28-year-old Chinese Taipei women’s boxer who has found herself at the center of a raging debate about biology and sports.

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As boxing events kicked off at the Olympics in Paris this week, the eligibility of Taiwan’s Lin as well as Algeria’s Imane Khelif has been questioned by critics claiming that they are men pretending to be women for competitive advantage. (Both have identified as women since birth, and both have competed and lost to women in international boxing events, including previous Olympics.)

Among the most prominent voices crying unfair is Rowling, who achieved massive renown for her Harry Potter series but has in recent years become known for her outspokenness on transgender issues—a turn that has alienated both her fans and the franchise’s biggest stars. 

Sharing an article by the Guardian about the controversy surrounding Lin and Khelif, Rowling posted on X earlier this week: “What will it take to end this insanity? A female boxer left with life-altering injuries? A female boxer killed?”

While Rowling’s previous comments on transgender issues have not made a significant mark in Taiwan, despite the self-ruled island being more progressive on LGBTQ rights than many of its neighbors in Asia, Taiwanese society has hit back with force at Rowling’s perceived attack on one of their own.

“It’s one thing to criticize transgender issues, but our Lin Yu Ting is completely not transgender!” reads a post on X on Wednesday by national newspaper The Liberty Times. “If J.K. Rowling can’t even tell the difference in this, this editor suggests she focuses on writing novels!”

And an article on Wednesday in Taiwanese newspaper United Daily News described the ongoing Olympic boxing debate as a “mistaken transgender controversy” that “even J.K. Rowling has misunderstood.” Similar headlines and TV news reports have proliferated.

Taiwanese officials, media, and members of the public have emphasized that Lin is and has always been considered female. Others’ doubt, however, stems from a decision by the International Boxing Association (IBA) last year to disqualify her and Khelif from the World Championships, claiming that they failed an unspecified eligibility test that determined they have XY chromosomes (the pair typically associated with males).

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The IBA, which is led by Russia, was stripped of its authority over Olympic boxing events because of long-standing concerns about integrity and governance, and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has repeatedly declared that Lin and Khelif are eligible to continue competing as women.

“These two athletes were the victims of a sudden and arbitrary decision by the IBA … without any due process,” the IOC said in a statement on Thursday. “Every person has the right to practice sport without discrimination.”

But critics, including Rowling, have not thrown in the towel on the debate, instead doubling down on their opposition to the participation of athletes like Lin and Khelif, and decrying the “brutal injustice” to Italian boxer Angela Carini, who abandoned her preliminary fight against Khelif on Thursday.

Now, Taiwanese Harry Potter fans are disavowing their love for the creator of their favorite fantasy series. “J.K. Rowling is suspecting Taiwan’s Olympian for competing as a transgender, I shall boycott all Harry Potter merchandise and movies,” one fan declared on a Harry Potter fan site in a post that was met with many comments voicing similar disappointment in Rowling’s remarks.

“This is so shocking and disappointing to me, and I believe to everyone else in Fairyland,” reads one comment, referencing the name of the fan site. “Rowling is no longer my favorite author,” said more than one commenter. “Even though I love Harry Potter, I no longer like Rowling.”

Taiwanese social media users are also pulling no punches in defense of Lin.

“Even J.K. Rowling is joining in on the heckling, claiming that she’s speaking for women but is in fact maligning an innocent person,” a Taipei-based user posted on X, urging greater support for Lin, who is “completely female and has a sad story.” (Lin said when she was in middle school that she took up boxing at age 13 to try to protect her mother from domestic abuse.)

“It’s horrific that J.K. Rowling, who’s wielding her reputation and always uses crazy tactics, totally doesn’t care that she might be wrong, and is desperately smearing our athlete,” reads another popular post on X by a doctor aimed at dispelling doubts about Lin’s gender.

Politicians, many from the ruling Democratic Progressive Party, have come out swinging, too.

“Let’s not even talk about the fact that J.K. Rowling’s opinions and stance on transgender issues in recent years have been very controversial. I’ll say just one thing: identity card number,” Keelung City Councillor Jiho Tiun wrote on Facebook, referring to Taiwanese citizens’ national identification numbers that begin with 1 for males and 2 for females and are rarely altered. 

“If she was biologically male and went to change her gender to get better results in competition, then her identity card would have begun with 1 instead of 2. Because no baby at birth would have schemed this way just to take part in the Olympics 28 years later,” Tiun continued. “This may make sense for a novelist specializing in writing about magic and wizardry. But in Taiwan, registering your identity and gender after birth is something that can’t be simpler.”

New Taipei City Councilor Cho Kuan-ting similarly emphasized that Lin was born female and urged the public to show their solidarity with her. “Everyone please support our national Olympic athlete Lin Yu Ting,” he wrote in a Facebook post. “The worst is the fact that writer J.K. Rowling, a key opinion leader, is publicly questioning the Taiwanese athlete’s gender.”

Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te’s spokesperson said Thursday in a post on X that Lin “has shown incredible strength, overcoming doubts to compete fairly on the world stage. Your determination inspires the nation!” 

Meanwhile, former President Tsai Ing-wen, voiced her support for Lin on Friday. “Lin Yu Ting is going to play tonight, seeking to advance, fighting for victory for herself, and fighting for honor for Taiwan,” she wrote in a Facebook post. “Faced with disturbances and her opponents’ challenge outside of the ring, I believe Lin is not afraid.”

Lawmaker Su Chiao-hui, who has known Lin since 2017, also wished Lin good luck for her scheduled 57-kg round of 16 bout with Uzbekistan’s Sitora Turdibekova on Friday, describing Lin as “the pride of Taiwanese boxing.”

“The Yu Ting I know is a gentle and strong athlete. I believe that the disturbances off the court will not affect her!” Su wrote on Facebook. 

“On Yu Ting’s competition eligibility being questioned by a British boxer and British writer, of course I can understand that athletes have their opinions about their interests,” director-general of Taiwan’s sports administration Cheng Shih-Chung told reporters on Thursday, in apparent reference to Rowling and other critics that have included some current and former boxers around the world. “But after all, they don’t know the whole story,” he said, adding that criticisms of Lin may be a psychological tactic to throw off the Taiwanese boxer.

Lin, for her part, is rolling with the punches, telling reporters in Paris that her emotions have not been affected by the controversy. “I can definitely interpret these challenges as opponents being so afraid of our ability, that they’re making an issue out of some problems,” she said. “The more they fear me, the better I’ll perform in the boxing ring.”