Olympics 2024 gender row boxer Imane Khelif set to turn pro after winning gold in Paris
GOLD medal Olympian Imane Khelif is set to become a professional boxer.
Khelif, 25, won the top prize in the women’s welterweight boxing category in Paris in the summer.
However, what should have been a joyous run as she lifted Algeria’s first-ever gold medal in the event was tarnished by a gender row.
After Italy’s Angela Carini quit their tournament opener after 46 seconds, unsubstantiated claims she was born a male spread like wildfire on social media.
Names with huge followings including Elon Musk, JK Rowling and Donald Trump all piled into the conversation, with Khelif slamming subsequent attacks against her and her family as “cruel”.
This prompted her to file a lawsuit against Musk’s X platform for facilitating online harassment towards her.
But following her success at the Paris Games, Khelif is now taking the next step in her already record-breaking boxing career.
Speaking at a press conference on Sunday, she said: “I would like to hold a press conference today to share with you my success story with the media family and young women who watch me.
“There is a documentary being prepared about my success story and it will be shown on international platforms.
“I will soon enter the world of professional boxing, I have many offers.
“Currently, I have not made up my mind about where I will enter professional boxing.
“But very soon I will take this step, we as Algerians would like to see our level in the field of professionalism.”
A recent video of Khelif on Instagram showed her in training with the caption: “Before the spotlight, it’s all about the mindset. Focused, locked in, ready for gold.”
Earlier this month the WBO were forced to deny “obviously false” reports that they had banned Khelif and stripped her of her Paris medal for failing gender eligibility tests.
The WBO’s legal counsel Gustavo Olivieri said in a statement the body had “not tested, nor had it banned,” Khelif and had had no communication with her.
With Khelif still being an amateur, the WBO would have no jurisdiction or power to strip her medal.
A year prior to the Olympics, Khelif was disqualified from the Women’s World Championships for failing the International Boxing Association’s (IBA) gender eligibility rules.
But the Russian-led body was stripped of its governance by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) over integrity and governance issues.
The IBA’s tests result and credibility was also called into question.
IOC and Paris 2024 Boxing Unit statement in full
A look at the full statement issued by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the Paris 2024 Boxing Unit...
Every person has the right to practise sport without discrimination.
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 set by the Paris 2024 Boxing Unit (PBU). As with previous Olympic boxing competitions, the gender and age of the athletes are based on their passport.
These rules also applied during the qualification period, including the boxing tournaments of the 2023 European Games, Asian Games, Pan American Games and Pacific Games, the ad hoc 2023 African qualifying tournament in Dakar (SEN) and two world qualifying tournaments held in Busto Arsizio (ITA) and Bangkok (THA) in 2024, which involved a total of 1,471 different boxers from 172 National Olympic Committees (NOCs), the Boxing Refugee Team and Individual Neutral Athletes, and featured over 2,000 qualification bouts.
The PBU used the Tokyo 2020 boxing rules as a baseline to develop its regulations for Paris 2024. This was to minimise the impact on athletes’ preparations and guarantee consistency between Olympic Games. These Tokyo 2020 rules were based on the post-Rio 2016 rules, which were in place before the suspension of the boxing International Federation by the IOC in 2019 and the subsequent withdrawal of its recognition in 2023.
We have seen in reports misleading information about two female athletes competing at the Olympic Games Paris 2024. The two athletes have been competing in international boxing competitions for many years in the women’s category, including the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, International Boxing Association (IBA) World Championships and IBA-sanctioned tournaments.
These two athletes were the victims of a sudden and arbitrary decision by the IBA. Towards the end of the IBA World Championships in 2023, they were suddenly disqualified without any due process.
According to the IBA minutes available on their website, this decision was initially taken solely by the IBA Secretary General and CEO. The IBA Board only ratified it afterwards and only subsequently requested that a procedure to follow in similar cases in the future be established and reflected in the IBA Regulations. The minutes also say that the IBA should “establish a clear procedure on gender testing”.
The current aggression against these two athletes is based entirely on this arbitrary decision, which 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.
Eligibility rules should not be changed during ongoing competition, and any rule change must follow appropriate processes and should be based on scientific evidence.
The IOC is committed to protecting the human rights of all athletes participating in the Olympic Games as per the Olympic Charter, the IOC Code of Ethics and the IOC Strategic Framework on Human Rights. The IOC is saddened by the abuse that the two athletes are currently receiving.
The IBA’s recognition was withdrawn by the IOC in 2023 following its suspension in 2019. The withdrawal of recognition was confirmed by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). See the IOC’s statement following the ruling.
The IOC has made it clear that it needs National Boxing Federations to reach a consensus around a new International Federation in order for boxing to be included on the sports programme of the Olympic Games LA28.