Recently, during the 2024 Paris Olympics, Algerian boxer Imane Khelif faced backlash as people believed that she wasn’t a woman, considering the elevated level of testosterone and the presence of XY chromosomes in her body system. Many said she faked herself as a woman.
Soon, the internet went into a frenzy about whether Imane should be eligible to compete in Olympic women’s boxing.
Additionally, famous figures like J.K. Rowling, Elon Musk, and former U.S. President Donald Trump expressed their dissatisfaction with the Olympics for allowing Imane to compete as a woman in the boxing competition at the Paris 2024 games.
Amidst all this wide criticism, Imane’s father, Amar Khelif, has come forward in support of his daughter. In an interview with Reuters, he said, “Having such a daughter is an honor because she is a champion. She honored me.”
He further stated that whatever the situation is, he will continue to encourage Imane and is also hopeful that she will win the medal in the Olympics.
Amar Khelif shows an official document verifying that Imane was born female!
After the controversy, the boxer’s proud father, Amar Khelif, shared several details in the media that provide evidence that Imane Khelf is a woman.
He first shared his boxer daughter’s childhood pictures and said, “My child is a girl…..She has loved sports since she was six years old.” Further, he shows an official family document dated May 2, 1999, in which it is written that Imane is female.
After that, Amar went on to criticize the attackers, saying that this was all a ploy to prevent Imane from winning at the Olympics boxing and that it was not fair to do so.
Like her dad, Algerian TV news anchor Youcef Zaghbs, who grew up along with Imane, came in defense of an Algerian boxer.
He stated he has known Imane since she was a little girl. As they belong to the Algerian community, he said they do not entertain the idea of ‘transgender,’ so she is certainly a female.
Youcef also mentioned that Imane’s family was against a girl boxing since they live in a conservative society. Afterward, when Imane won the boxing competition in her homeland, her family became her biggest supporter.
Imane Khelif comes from a poor family background, given that her parents didn’t have a proper job
While defending Imane Khelif, Algeria’s popular TV anchor Youcef Zaghba revealed that the parents of Imane Khelif struggled a lot to fulfill their children’s basic needs as they never had a stable job.
Youcef stated, “Her father did not always work, and her mother did not work. She was the eldest daughter in the family.” Because of that, Imane had to go through several difficult situations.
However, when she showcased her boxing skills, just to support her for her bus fare, her mother started selling couscous while Imane herself sold scrap metal for recycling to earn an extra amount.
In such a way, she reached the international lever tournament, the Olympics, but sadly, she was dragged into insensitive controversy, which obviously affected her and her parents. But despite that, she secured a medal in the quarterfinals of the women’s 66-kilogram bout, defeating Anna Luca Hamori of Hungary.
Additional Information
- Imane Khelif is an Algerian boxer who switched to boxing after initially being involved in football. She attended a neighboring village for training sessions since her family did not initially approve of her boxing.
- Khelif and Chinese boxer Yang Liu were disqualified amid the International Boxing Association claiming they had failed eligibility tests.
- Imane won a silver medal in the 2022 World Championship and gold medals in the 2022 African Championships, Mediterranean Games, and 2023 Arab Games.
