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'I Am a Woman Like Any Other' Imane Khelif Stands Strong in Gender Controversy After Clinching Olympic Gold
Imane Khelif is now a gold medalist at the 2024 Paris Olympics. And she spoke louder than ever, for those still unconvinced, she IS a woman.
Through fire and doubt, she rose. Through fire and doubt, she stayed mum, but glory came and she spoke. After two weeks of controversy surrounding her gender, Imane Khelif claimed her first Olympic gold, triumphing over world champion Yang Liu of China in the women’s 66 kg category by unanimous decision. She firmly stated, "I was born a woman," and lived her truth.
The 25-year-old celebrated her greatest career victory at Roland Garros, where the Algerian diaspora filled Court Philippe-Chatrier, cheering her on every second of the gold medal match. Khelif became Algeria’s first female Olympic gold medalist in boxing and the country’s first boxing gold medalist since 1996.
Gold medal and iron will
“As for whether I qualify or not, whether I am a woman or not, I have made many statements in the media,” Khelif said after her win. “I am fully qualified to take part in this competition. I’m a woman like any other woman. I was born a woman, I lived a woman, I competed as a woman, there’s no doubt about that. [The detractors] are enemies of success; that is what I call them. And that also gives my success a special taste because of these attacks.”
Khelif is one of two boxers, alongside Lin Yu-ting, who have faced a gender eligibility controversy following their bans from competing in the 2023 boxing world championships due to failing a gender eligibility test administered by the International Boxing Association (IBA). Imane Khelif faced questions about whether she was a woman; she was labeled as a 'male boxer fighting women,' but she remained calm through the storm.
Before these controversies, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) decided to step up. It stripped the IBA of its recognition as the governing body for boxing and expelled it from the Olympics due to issues like corruption, financial transparency, and governance.
Despite the heated debates over transgender women in women’s sports, there are no transgender women competing in the Paris Olympics.
Khelif was born female, grew up as a woman, can have children, and has competed in women’s boxing for years with clearance from the IOC. The IOC initially noted that she had elevated testosterone levels, which can naturally occur in women. She was hence previously disqualified by the IBA from the 2023 world championships for failing gender tests. The IBA is no longer recognized by the international boxing federation due to concerns about its governance and ethics.
Just three days after the Algerian diaspora in France rallied around Khelif in her semi-final match, making their support evident during a challenging two weeks, they returned on Friday, even louder. After the first three finals of the night wrapped up, the 15,000-strong crowd erupted at the mention of Khelif’s name. Chants of “Imane! Imane!” reverberated through the stadium.
“My honor is intact now,” Khelif said. “But the attacks I heard on social media were extremely harsh, meaningless, and they affect the dignity of people. I believe that now, people’s thinking has shifted.
“As for the IBA, I’ve been boxing under their umbrella since 2018. They know me well; they know what I’m capable of; they’ve seen my growth over the years, but now they are no longer recognized. They seem to hate me, and I don’t understand why. My message to them is simple: with this gold medal, my dignity, my honor stands above everything else.”
Imane Khelif and the horrors of 'transvestigation'
For those unfamiliar, Algeria's Imane Khelif won a women’s boxing match in just 46 seconds after Italy’s Angela Carini stopped fighting. Khelif's punches were so powerful that Carini was in too much pain to continue, as noted by Italian coach Emanuele Renzini.
However, a narrative pushed by figures like JD Vance, J.K. Rowling, former President Donald Trump, and others led many to falsely believe that Khelif was secretly a man.
The Boston Globe even mistakenly printed a headline calling her a “transgender boxer,” later issuing an apology and correction. On Fox News, Clay Travis and David Webb also falsely labeled Khelif and Taiwanese boxer Yu-Ting as “biologically men” on air.
In reality, Khelif and Yu-Ting are neither transgender nor secretly men.
These women are victims of what’s known as “transvestigation,” a baseless conspiracy theory aiming to prove that prominent figures, particularly female athletes, are secretly trans. According to Laurel Powell, a spokesperson for the Human Rights Campaign, this trend arises from a mix of “heightened and baseless anti-trans vitriol, social media amplifying disinformation, and people's rigid ideas of what women or men should look and act like,” as reported by USA Today.
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