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Algeria's Imane Khelif, ensnared in political controversy, will box for Olympic gold
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PARIS — Imane Khelif, the Algerian boxer at the center of political controversy over participation in women's sports, will compete for the Olympic gold medal in women's boxing.
Away from Paris, criticism has erupted over the past week around Khelif's participation in the Olympics amid claims that she failed two gender eligibility tests administered by a boxing federation — tests that Olympic officials have dismissed as "illegitimate" as they have defended her participation.
But in the stands of Roland-Garros Stadium, dozens of Algerian flags hung over the seats, as hundreds of men and women dressed in green and red cheered raucously for Khelif.
Over three rounds in the ring Tuesday, Khelif traded blows with her opponent, Thailand's Janjaem Suwannapheng, in the 66kg weight class semifinal. With her win (a unanimous decision by the five judges), Khelif is set to compete Friday in the gold medal match, in which she will face China's Yang Liu.
"I don’t care about criticism. I care about competition. God willing, I will perform well in the final," Khelif told reporters after Tuesday's bout. "I will do everything I can to make it enjoyable to watch around the world."
After the official raised her hand to declare her victory, Khelif danced joyfully in the ring as Algerian fans roared their approval.
The political controversy around Khelif that erupted over the past week centers on a decision last year by the International Boxing Association to disqualify her and another female boxer from some competitions by claiming that they had failed two unspecified gender eligibility tests. The second boxer, Lin Yu-ting of Taiwan, is also competing in the Olympics.
Khelif, 25, is a woman and has competed for years in women's boxing, in which she has accumulated a typical record of wins and losses against her female competition.
"They were born as girls, registered as female passports, have fought at the senior level for six years with no issues," International Olympic Committee spokesperson Mark Adams said on Sunday.
But the Russia-linked boxing federation has refused to release any details about those tests, and the disqualification was announced shortly after Khelif defeated a Russian boxer.
In a chaotic press conference Monday, IBA officials raised more questions than they answered about the tests. IBA president Umar Kremlev, speaking by videoconference from Russia, said through a translator that their tests had shown elevated levels of testosterone — but that claim directly contradicted a previous statement from the IBA that said the boxers had not undergone a testosterone exam.
The IOC says the IBA shared the results of the tests, which Olympic officials have denounced as they continue to defend the boxers' participation.
"The method of the testing, the idea of the testing — which kind of happened overnight — none of it was legitimate," Adams said. The IOC broke ties with the IBA last year over long-standing concerns about corruption.
Still, the controversy has led to a swell of harassment online targeted at Khelif and Lin, who will compete in her own semifinal in a different weight class on Wednesday. Earlier in the tournament, Algerian Olympic officials filed a complaint with the IOC to protest harmful posts made online by one of Khelif's competitors; the IOC ordered the competitor to remove them.
"It can destroy people, it can kill people’s thoughts, spirit and mind. It can divide people. And because of that, I ask them to refrain from bullying," Khelif said Sunday in an interview with SNTV, a sports news service.
At the stadium, fans of Algeria said they rejected the claims against Khelif and decried the online harassment that has surrounded her. "I think she is really brave to get into the ring today despite the relentless campaign against her," said Abdelslam Afs. "We are all here to support her."
Another fan, the Algiers-born Yacine Bouzydy, said he originally hadn't planned to attend Tuesday's bout, as he doesn't closely follow sports. But when he heard about the controversy surrounding Khelif, he decided to attend to show his support and "give her energy," he said.
"Algeria is quite a conservative country to France and to other European countries. But for this specific story, the role has changed somehow," he said.
"I can imagine that it was very, very hard for her to go beyond this and to compete and to win the bronze medal, at least," Bouzydy said. "I hope it will end with a gold medal. And even if not, Algerian people are very happy."
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Reporting assistance provided by Fatima al-Kassab in Paris and NPR's Linah Mohammed in Washington, D.C.
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