Algerian boxer Imane Khelif wins Olympic gold after social media firestorm

(CNN) — Algerian boxer Imane Khelif defeated Chinese opponent Yang Liu in the 66kg gold medal bout at the Paris Summer Olympics on Friday.

Khelif received a warm welcome from the crowd as she entered the ring at Roland Garros Stadium for her fourth bout of the Games. Algerian flags were seen waving all around the arena.

In the first round, both fighters started off tentatively, but Khelif got the better of her southpaw opponent, taking the round in unanimous fashion.

It was more of the same in the second round as a stiff punch from the Algerian sent Yang bouncing off the ropes in the opening seconds. With the pro-Khelif crowd chanting wildly, she punished her opponent with a barrage of punches on her way to another victorious round on all the judges’ scorecards.

With a huge lead on the scorecards, Khelif continued to apply the pressure to Yang in the third and final round. The Chinese fighter continued pressing forward, but could not break through Khelif’s defense.

“I’m very happy. For eight years, this has been my dream and I’m now the Olympic champion and gold medallist,” she said after the fight. “I’ve worked for eight years, no sleep, eight years tired. Now I’m Olympic champion.”I want to thank all the people who have come to support me. All the people from Algeria and all the people at my base. I want to thank all the team, my coach. Thank you so much.”

After the final bell rang, the fighters hugged in a show of respect and sportsmanship.

The crowd cheered raucously as it was announced that Khelif had won the gold medal on points by unanimous decision.

Khelif did her trademark victory dance in the ring and posed for photographers before she was carried away from the ring on the shoulders of one of her trainers.

Khelif had been the subject of global attention after defeating Italian boxer Angela Carini in just 46 seconds in a preliminary match.

The fight triggered an onslaught of online abuse, with transphobic commentators incorrectly calling Khelif “a man” because she had failed a so-called “gender test” by a now-discredited boxing federation that had been stripped of its ability to run the Olympic events. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) took over the sport for the 2024 Games because it decided that no international federation was qualified to run the sport and emphasized repeatedly that Khelif met the criteria to compete.

Khelif has filed a legal complaint with Paris prosecutors saying she suffered “aggravated online harassment”, her lawyer Nabil Boudi said on Saturday.

According to a press release posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, by Boudi, the complaint was filed with the Paris prosecutor’s office in charge of the fight against online harassment on Friday.

“Imane Khelif decided to lead a new fight: one of justice, dignity and honor,” Boudi said.

“The inquiry will determine who started this misogynistic, racist and sexist campaign but will also look at those who fed this online lynching,” he added.

“Imane contacted the firm to clear her name,” her lawyer told CNN on Sunday, adding that the “harassment that my client suffered was orchestrated by high-ranking public and political figures.”

IOC President Thomas Bach was asked Friday if the organization was prioritizing inclusion over safety by allowing Khelif and Lin to compete.

“It is not as easy as some in this cultural war want to portray it,” Bach answered. “These two are women, and they have the right to participate in the women’s competition. And this has nothing to do with inclusion in any way.”

Speaking in Arabic to SNTV, a sports video partner of the Associated Press, Khelif urged people earlier this week “to uphold the Olympic principles, according to the Olympic charter, to refrain from bullying all athletes because this thing has effects, massive effects.”

“It can destroy people, it can kill people’s thoughts, spirit and mind,” she said, adding that it was not easy to go through what followed her match with Carini.

IOC spokesperson Mark Adams defended Khelif’s participation the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at a press conference after the Carini fight, saying Khelif was “born female, was registered female, lived her life as a female, boxed as a female, has a female passport.”

The IOC confirmed at the time that the match was “not a man fighting a woman,” and that “scientifically on that, there is consensus.”

Khelif is not the only boxer receiving added attention for her presence in Paris. Boxer Lin Yu-ting of Taiwan is also in the spotlight after years of amateur competition.

Lin will fight in the women’s 57kg gold medal bout on Saturday.

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