Imane Khelif en quête d’or olympique malgré les controverses liées à son genre

Algerian boxer Imane Khelif aims for Olympic gold amid scrutiny over misconceptions about her gender. Discover the detailed journey of a remarkable athlete navigating challenges both inside and outside the ring.

Imane Khelif’s Olympic Journey

Algerian boxer Imane Khelif will continue her quest for an Olympic gold medal on Tuesday night amid a wave of intense scrutiny over misconceptions about her gender. Khelif faces Janjaem Suwannapheng of Thailand in the boxing semifinals at the Paris Olympics, held at Roland Garros, the famed tennis complex in Paris. The victor of this match will advance to the women’s 66-kilogram finals scheduled for Friday night.

Khelif, a two-time Olympian, has already secured her first-ever Olympic medal, marking it as Algeria’s debut medal in women’s boxing. To win Algeria’s second boxing gold medal, following Hocine Soltani’s 1996 victory, Khelif needs to win two more bouts.

First Victories and Controversy

Imane Khelif won her initial two fights in Paris with ease. However, the conclusion of her first bout thrust her into a global debate over gender identity and regulations in sports. Her first adversary, Angela Carini of Italy, resigned the fight after merely 46 seconds, citing unbearable pain from Khelif’s punches.

Carini’s withdrawal sparked comments from well-known figures such as former U.S. President Donald Trump and “Harry Potter” author J.K. Rowling, who erroneously claimed that Khelif was male or transgender. These comments have added unwarranted scrutiny to Khelif’s journey in the ring.

In an interview with SNTV, a sports video partner of The Associated Press, Khelif expressed that the wave of hateful scrutiny she faces “harms human dignity” and called for an end to the bullying of athletes.

Backing from the IOC

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) and its president, Thomas Bach, have consistently defended the Olympic eligibility of both Khelif and fellow boxer Lin Yu-ting of Taiwan. Khelif and Lin were disqualified by the International Boxing Association (IBA) in the middle of last year’s world championships due to what it claimed were failed eligibility tests for the women’s competition. The IBA, which has been excluded from the Olympics since before the Tokyo Games, struggled to clarify its decision during a news conference on Monday.

Lin has also secured a medal and advanced to the Olympic semifinals, where she will face Esra Yildiz Kahraman of Turkey in the first bout on Wednesday night at Roland Garros.

Olympic Boxing Tournament Structure

It is worth noting that Olympic boxing does not stage bronze-medal bouts. Therefore, the losers of both semifinal matches automatically receive bronze medals.

As Imane Khelif prepares to step back into the ring, all eyes are on her to see if she can overcome both her opponents and the external pressures to claim Olympic gold for Algeria.

Source : www.nbcnewyork.com