CNN
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Algerian boxer Imane Khelif, who was the subject of global attention during the Paris 2024 Games, says she’s aiming to defend her Olympic title at Los Angeles 2028 and brushed off criticism from President Donald Trump.
The Algerian – a cisgender woman who won gold in the women’s 66kg boxing competition – came under an onslaught of online abuse after defeating Italian boxer Angela Carini in just 46 seconds in a preliminary match, with transphobic commentators incorrectly calling Khelif “a man.”
In an excerpt of a recent interview with ITV News, Khelif said the fallout on social media during the Paris Games had shocked her.
“When I saw that even heads of state, famous figures, and former athletes were speaking about me without having verified facts, it shocked me,” she told the British outlet. “They were speaking about me without having verified facts. It impacted me.
“They were speaking just for the sake of talking, without any reliable or documented information.
“I also noticed on social media that people were discussing the issue without any trustworthy sources.”
Despite evidence to the contrary, Trump has wrongly referred to Khelif as a boxer who “transitioned,” fueling further abuse directed at the Algerian.
“Who could forget last year’s Paris Olympics, where a male boxer stole the women’s gold medal,” Trump said earlier this year after signing the “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports” executive order intended to ban transgender women from competing in women’s sports at schools and other settings.
Khelif, though, has not been intimidated by Trump’s comments and is confident of winning her second Olympic gold medal in the US.
“I will give you a straightforward answer: the US president issued a decision related to transgender policies in America. I am not transgender,” she added in her interview with ITV News.
“This does not concern me, and it does not intimidate me. That is my response. For me, I see myself as a girl just like any other girl. I was born a girl, raised as a girl, and have lived my entire life as one.”
Prior to her achievement in Paris, Khelif was disqualified in 2023 from the world championships held by the International Boxing Association (IBA) – an organization with extensive ties to the Russian government which was stripped of official recognition by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for a variety of problems, including a history of corruption.
The IBA has claimed that a gender eligibility test showed Khelif had “competitive advantages over other female competitors,” but it has never substantiated this assertion.
The organization has since launched legal action against Khelif and the IOC over the former being allowed to compete at the Games. The IOC responded by calling it “just another example of IBA’s campaign against the IOC.”
Outgoing IOC President Thomas Bach has staunchly defended Khelif and exclusively told CNN Sports that the controversy was a Russian-led misinformation campaign during the Games.
“The impression was given as if these two boxers (…) would be transgender athletes. They are not,” he told CNN Sports’ Amanda Davies recently.
“They have been born as women. They have been raised as women. They have been competing as women. They have lost bouts, and they have won bouts. They have even competed in the Olympic Games in Tokyo without any noise.”
Despite remaining resilient amid such a global furore, Khelif said it was difficult to see the impact that the debate had on her family.
“Even my mother was deeply affected. She was going to the hospital almost every day,” she added.
“My relatives were also impacted, and the entire Algerian people felt the weight of the situation. This went beyond just a sporting issue or a game; it escalated into a major media campaign.”
