Imane Khelif, boxer engulfed in Olympics gender controversy, declares 'I am a woman like any other woman' after winning gold

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PARIS — An Olympic boxing gold medal hanging around her neck, Algeria’s Imane Khelif directly addressed the controversy over her gender that had enveloped her during the Paris Games, made her a culture war wedge issue around the globe and left her subjected to vicious online hate.

Khelif won a unanimous decision over China’s Liu Yang in the 66kg division here Thursday, winning a tournament that some questioned her eligibility to even be in. The 25-year-old was disqualified from the 2023 World Championships over a test that the International Boxing Association claims showed she had XY chromosomes.

Khelif brushed off any suggestion she was anything but a woman and noted she cleared all IOC standards to participate in her second Olympics. She finished fifth in 2021 in Tokyo.

“As for whether I qualify or not, or whether I am a woman or not, I am fully qualified to take part in this competition,” Khelif said.

“I am a woman like any other woman,” she continued. “I was born a woman. I’ve lived as a woman. I’ve competed as a woman. There is no doubt about that.”

She also dismissed her critics.

“They are enemies of my success,” she said. “That is what I call them. That also gives my success a special taste because of these attacks.”

A firestorm erupted after Khelif’s opening-round opponent quit 46 seconds into the fight declaring the Algerian was too strong.

The IBA, which the IOC had stripped of overseeing boxing competition here, stated it had tests that questioned the chromosomal make-up of Khelif and Chinese Taipei’s Lin Yu-ting, who will fight for gold in the 57kg division on Saturday.

Politicians and opportunists quickly began suggesting that Khelif was a transgender athlete and this was akin to a man beating up a woman. The IOC argued back, but has not recovered from that suggestion ricocheting around the world.

“This is not a transgender case,” IOC spokesman Mark Adams repeatedly declared. “There has been some confusion that this is a man fighting a woman. This is just not the case. On that there is consensus. Scientifically this is not a man fighting a woman.”

“We have two boxers who were born as woman [sic], who have been raised as woman, who have a passport as a woman and have competed for many years as woman,” IOC president Thomas Bach stated.

It is possible for a person to be born with full female genitalia and still have XY chromosomes. Whether that is fair for competition is something organizing bodies must sort through, but it is a far cry from suggesting that Algeria, a country that is 99 percent Muslim, was suddenly sending formerly male athletes to win medals in women’s events.

Khelif was raised as a girl in Biban Mesbah, a small, poor, rural village located about 175 miles southwest of Algiers. She credits her hard work and the support of her family for becoming an Olympic champion.

While some in the Western world have questioned her, she is a hero within her own country. The crowd here at Roland-Garros, the famed tennis facility hosting the boxing medal rounds, was electric, full of Algerian fans chanting her name, waving flags and roaring with delight when she won.

Before the medal ceremony where an Algerian would stand atop the podium, an Algerian flag would be raised highest of all and the Algerian anthem would blast out into the Parisian night, fans crowded down to the front rows. They climbed over seats and pushed past security guards just to get close to the moment.

Afterward, Khelif received a call from Alergia’s president and was hailed as a role model for women within the country and across the Arab world.

“Algerian women are known for their strong will and valor,” Khelif said.

It was just part of the contrasts of the night — a groundbreaking icon of women’s equality to some, a sign of unfairness to others.

It is clear that much of the boxing world respects and supports her. Liu, for her part, repeatedly tapped gloves with Khelif on Friday and hugged her after the fight. Liu’s corner also offered congratulations.

As for the IBA, Khelif said she had fought under its umbrella since 2018 and can’t understand why it decided to disqualify her in 2023, let alone spread word of the reported test during these Games.

The IOC stripped the IBA of overseeing Olympic boxing due to repeated corruption charges and judging scandals. It is heavily influenced by Russia, which the IOC also banned from these Olympics.

It doesn’t mean the IBA's tests are wrong, but it is not a stretch to believe it would be interested in sowing confusion on the events in Paris either.

As with everything in this story, what is and isn’t real is the central question.

“Now [the IBA is] not recognized anymore, and they hate me,” Khelif said. “And I don’t know why. I really don’t know why. I sent them a single message with this gold medal: I say that my dignity, my honor, is above everything else.”

Khelif said she brushed off the social media vitriol and concentrated on her competition, but she hopes that she can be an example of why it needs to stop.

“They should avoid bullying,” Khelif said. “I would hope that people will stop bullying.”

It will not be that simple, but nothing in this case has been. The issues surrounding chromosomes, tests, competitive balance and politics have been all-encompassing.

“We try to continue to deliver safe, fair and inclusive sport,” Adams of the IOC said. “All those three things can be difficult to come together at times.”

In the end, Khelif came out on top, a gold medalist and beloved champion in her country, and now hitting back on any question of whether she deserves it.