Who is Imane Khelif, the Algerian boxer at the centre of an Olympics gender storm?

For those who tuned into the women’s round-of-16 boxing at the Olympics on Thursday, one fight in particular would have been easy to miss. Just 46 seconds after Italy’s Angela Carini and Algeria’s Imane Khelif stepped out into the ring, the match was over.

After 25-year-old Khelif landed one punch on the chinstrap of her Italian opponent, Carini immediately turned to her team and opted against continuing. “It’s not right, it’s not right,” she could be heard telling her coach. After withdrawing from the match, fell to her knees sobbing and refused to shake Khelif’s hand after the Algerian was declared the winner.

Later, she told reporters she had never been hit so hard in her whole career.

“I am heartbroken,” Carini said. “I went to the ring to honour my father. I was told a lot of times that I was a warrior but I preferred to stop for my health. I have never felt a punch like this.”

The 25-year-old, from Naples, added: “I got into the ring to fight. I didn’t give up, but one punch hurt too much and so I said enough. I’m going out with my head held high.

“After the second punch, after years of experience, I felt a strong pain in the nose. I said enough, because I didn’t want. I couldn’t finish the fight after the punch to the nose. So it was better to put an end to it.”

Immediately, questions about Khelif’s gender began to swirl online, and the 46 second incident has become one of the most controversial moments from the Paris games. Khelif was born a woman and, until last year, had always competed in women’s boxing categories without controversy or attention.

However, at the 2023 women’s World Championships in New Delhi, she was disqualified for failing a gender eligibility test. At the same tournament, Taiwan’s Lin Yu-ting, two-time world champion was also disqualified for failing to meet the gender eligibility criteria of the International Boxing Association (IBA).

Neither Khelif, nor 28-year-old Lin are transgender or intersex. The IBA didn’t specify why the boxers failed their gender eligibility tests but did said that neither underwent testosterone examinations, and it is thus far unclear what the gender tests consist of.

Still, prominent figures on social media have slammed Khelif's participation at the Olympics. Author JK Rowling falsely referred to Khelif as “a male who’s knows he’s protected by a misogynist sporting establishment enjoying the distress of a woman he’s just punched in the head.” Meanwhile, X owner Elon Musk amplified a tweet from swimmer Riley Gaines that “men don't belong in women's sports.” British Olympic boxer Nicola Adams has also weighed in, saying “people not born as biological women, that have been through male puberty, should not be able to compete in women’s sports…it’s dangerous!”.

Khelif is next scheduled to fight on Saturday (3 August) at 4.22pm BST, and a victory would guarantee the Algerian at least a bronze medal at 66kg.

Here is everything we know about the 25-year-old Algerian at the centre of an Olympics gender storm.

‘I started with nothing’ – defying gender stereotypes in rural Algeria

Born in 1999 in a rural village in Tiaret, a province in northwestern Algeria, Khelif’s journey into boxing was far from straightforward. She originally started playing football in her village, but received pushback from people around her who believed girls shouldn’t play sport.

In an interview with UNICEF in March, Khelif recalled how boys in her village felt threatened by her football skills, and would pick fights with her. Dodging their punches, Khelif discovered that she was also pretty good at another sport – boxing.

However, embracing boxing turned out to be an even bigger hurdle than football for Khelif. Each week, she had to travel 10 kilometres to a neighbouring village to train, a fare she couldn’t afford.  With her father in the Sahara desert as a welder—and disapproving of his daughter participating in boxing— Khelif had to find her own way. To gather enough money, she sold scrap metal for recycling, while her mother chipped in by selling couscous. Together, their efforts ensured Imane could catch the bus to town, enabling her to attend regular boxing training sessions.

Despite initial resistance from her father, Khelif eventually gained support from both of her parents to pursue her career. “I started with nothing and now I have everything,” she told UNICEF. “Both my parents come to support me. They are my biggest fans.”

Khelif has also used her platform to speak about how important sport is in a country like Algeria where opportunities for girls in sport are limited. “Many parents are unaware of the advantages of sport, and how it can improve not only your physical fitness but also your mental wellbeing,” she told UNICEF.

‘A big conspiracy’ – disqualified from World Championships before her gold medal match

Until last year, Khelif had always competed in women’s boxing categories without controversy or attention.

At the 2018 Women's World Boxing Championships, she finished 17th after being eliminated in the first round by Karina Ibragimova.  At the same tournament the following year, she came in 33rd after being beaten in the first round.

By the Tokyo Olympics in 2020, Khelif was beginning to work her way up to the top of the sport, managing to make it to the quarterfinals. At the 2022 World Boxing Championships, she became the first Algerian female boxer to reach the final, but was defeated by Amy Broadhurst and finished as runner-up.

However, her career came to a halt in March last year, when she again reached the final of the World Boxing Championships. This time, however, she was disqualified shortly before the gold medal match for failing to meet eligibility criteria. The Algerian Olympic Committee stated that Khelif was disqualified for medical reasons.

At the same tournament, Taiwan’s Lin Yu-ting, a two-time world champion, was also disqualified for failing to meet the gender eligibility criteria of the International Boxing Association (IBA). The IBA didn’t say why the boxers failed their gender eligibility tests, but did say that neither underwent testosterone examinations.

At the time, Khelif said the ruling meant having "characteristics that mean I can’t box with women", saying she was the victim of a "big conspiracy". She made an appeal before the Court of Arbitration for Sport but later withdrew it.

While the World Championships were run by IBA, the association is no longer recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). Instead, this summer’s Olympic boxing is being run by the Paris Boxing Unit (PBU), established by the IOC’s Executive Board.

‘Baseless propaganda’ – Paris Olympics controversy

After Carini and Khelif’s match on Thursday, misinformation quickly swirled online about Khelif’s gender, including claims that she was born biologically male.

Social media users were quick to weigh in on the controversy: as well as JK Rowling and Elon Musk, Judy Murray also slammed the decision to allow Khelif to compete, saying on X, “This should never have been allowed to happen. Bring back the swab test. Sport has to be fair and safe for biological women.”

Republican Vice Presidential candidate JD Vance also shared his thoughts on X, saying: “This is where Kamala Harris’s ideas about gender lead: to a grown man pummeling a woman in a boxing match. This is disgusting and all of our leaders should condemn it.”

In a statement at the start of the tournament, the IOC said: “All athletes participating in the boxing tournament of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 comply with the competition’s eligibility and entry regulations, as well as all applicable medical regulations in accordance with rules 1.4 and 3.1 of the Paris 2024 Boxing Unit.

“The PBU endeavoured to restrict amendments to minimise the impact on athletes’ preparation and guaranteeing consistency between Olympic Games.

Addressing the issue at a news conference on Tuesday, IOC spokesperson Mark Adams said: “These boxers are completely eligible. They are women on their passports, they are women who have competed in the Tokyo Olympics and have been competing for many years, I think we all have a responsibility to tone it down and not turn it into a witch hunt.”

After Khelif’s match, the IOC and the Boxing Unit put out a further statement, saying: “The current aggression against these two athletes is based entirely on this arbitrary decision. [It] was taken without any proper procedure—especially considering that these athletes had been competing in top-level competition for many years. Such an approach is contrary to good governance.”

The Algerian Olympic Committee (COA) also defended Khelif, denouncing what they called "unethical targeting" and "baseless propaganda" against her.

For her part, Khelif has yet to speak publicly about the issue, but in the past said she has said that she is proud of her ability to overcome obstacles, including finding success in a sport that her father didn’t approve of girls participating in. “My dream is to win a gold medal,” she said in March. “I particularly want to inspire girls.”

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