Algerian gender scandal boxer Imane Khelif files legal complaint over online hate after winning Olympic gold

11 August 2024, 08:18

Algerian boxer Imane Khelif has filed a legal complaint over online harassment hours after controversially winning Olympic gold in Paris.

The boxer found herself at the centre of a gender row after her first round opponent, Italian Angela Carini, abandoned the fight after just 46 seconds, saying she feared for her life over the Algerian's strength.

Now, Imane Khelif's lawyer, Nabil Boudi, has spoken out, noting a complaint was filed with the Paris Prosecutor's Office on Friday.

It comes hours after the boxer said "attacks" on her had left a "special taste" after clinching the gold medal on Friday night.

The row stems from the boxer's disqualification from the 2023 World Championships after failing a gender eligibility test, where Khelif failed two sex tests.

On Friday, Khelif beat China's Yang Liu by unanimous decision in the Olympic final to claim gold in the women's welterweight final.

Speaking after the win, the gold medal-winning boxer said: "All that is being said about me on social media is immoral. I want to change the minds of people around the world."

When asked about the row, she continued: "That also gives my success a special taste because of those attacks."

"I'm fully qualified to take part in this competition," she added. "I'm a woman like any other woman. I was born as a woman, I live as a woman, and I am qualified."

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Khelif added that winning gold would be the "best response" to her critics.

Since the uproar surrounding her inclusion in the games, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has spoken out, noting the decision was "sudden and arbitrary" and the tests were majorly flawed.

It comes hours after two members of Team GB’s support staff helped save the life of the head coach of the Uzbekistan boxing team after he suffered a cardiac arrest while celebrating the country's gold medal win.

Tulkin Kilichev was cheering the gold medal for Uzbek boxer Hasanboy Dusmatov in the warm-up area at Roland Garros on Thursday evening when he fell down clenching his chest.

But GB Boxing doctor Harj Singh and physio Robbie Lillis, who were also in the warm-up area, dashed to the coach's aid, helping to save his life.