Algerian boxer Imane Khelife became the talk of the town at the 2024 Paris Olympics after allegations questioning her gender began to surface when her opponent quit after just 46 seconds in the ring with her, citing personal safety.
Clarifying on the matter, Olympic organisers had this to say.
They stated, “The Algerian boxer was born female, registered female, lived her life as a female, boxed as a female, and has a female passport.”
“This is not a transgender case. I know there has been some confusion that somehow it is a man fighting a woman.”
“This woman has competed for a very long time in women’s sports against many opponents,” they added.
The father, too, slammed members of the media for stating that they were ‘immoral’ and ‘unfair.’
“These women have been competing in competitions for many years. The testosterone is not a perfect test.”
“Many women can have elevated levels of testosterone, which is in what would be called ‘male levels,’ and still be women and still compete as women,” he said.
With that out of the way, let’s not deprive this athlete of her right to compete and make a mark in the Olympics.
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