Boxer Facing Scrutiny Over Gender Wins Gold

Imane Khelif of Algeria, who has faced a global backlash, had fans with her in the final
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Aug 9, 2024 5:30 PM CDT
Boxer Facing Scrutiny Over Gender Wins Gold
Algeria fans cheer as Imane Khelif prepares to fight Friday in Paris.   (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)

Algerian boxer Imane Khelif won a gold medal Friday at the Paris Olympics, emerging as a champion from a tumultuous run at the Games where she endured intense scrutiny in the ring and online abuse from around the world over misconceptions about her gender. Khelif beat Yang Liu of China 5:0 in the final of the women's welterweight division, wrapping up the best series of fights of her career with a victory at Roland Garros, where crowds chanted her name, waved Algerian flags, and roared every time she landed a punch, the AP reports.

After her unanimous win, Khelif jumped into her coaches' arms, one of them putting her on his shoulders and carrying her around the arena in a victory lap as she pumped her fists and grabbed an Algerian flag from a spectator. Those cheering fans have embraced Khelif throughout her run in Paris even as she faced scrutiny from world leaders, celebrities, and others who have questioned her eligibility or falsely claimed she was a man. It has thrust her into a larger divide over changing attitudes toward gender identity and regulations in sports. Khelif has called for an end to bullying athletes. She said a gold medal would be "the best response" to the backlash against her.

The IOC repeatedly reaffirmed the right of Khelif and Lin Yu-ting of Taiwan to compete in Paris. That hasn't stopped the international outcry. Nor did it slow the two boxers, who performed at the highest levels of their careers while in the spotlight. Lin will fight for gold on Saturday, taking on Julia Szeremeta of Poland in the women's featherweight division, per the AP. Khelif's gold medal is Algeria's first in women's boxing. She is only the nation's second boxing gold medalist, joining Hocine Soltani, who won in 1996. When she was cast as an unstoppable punching machine last week by pundits who had never seen her fight, opponents and teammates who know her were shocked by the characterization. Then Khelif lived up to the notion of being one of the best Olympic boxers in the world.

(More 2024 Paris Olympics stories.)

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