Imane Khelif Says Donald Trump Was 'Oppressing' The Boxer
Imane Khelif, the Algerian boxer with XY chromosomes who won an Olympic gold medal in women's boxing, gave an interview after winning the competition.
In the interview, the gold medal is displayed between Khelif and the interviewer as the Olympian sat next to the Algerian boxing trainer.
The interview was conducted in Arabic, the official language of Algeria. Because of this, we have to rely on the closed captions to understand what Khelif and the interviewer are saying.
Based on the captions provided, we learn that Khelif – who is suing Elon Musk and J.K. Rowling, among others – felt "oppressed" by things that were said online.
Former United States President Donald Trump was mentioned by name by both Khelif and the interviewer.
Imane Khelif, the boxer with XY chromosomes who won a gold medal in women's boxing, said that Donald Trump was "oppressing" the athlete.
(Getty Images)
Khelif mostly took issue with people calling the athlete "transgender," which is not the case.
However, Khelif does not ever deny having XY chromosomes.
"These politicians who are oppressing me do not have the right to say I am a transgender," Khelif said.
"This is a big shame for my family, for the honor of my family, for the honor of Algeria."
But Khelif emphatically states "I'm a Muslim girl" and "I will always be a woman."
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The Khelif situation is much more nuanced than the typical situation where we find XY athletes competing in women's sports.
In most cases, people that are born male transition to female and then compete in women's sports.
OutKick is explicitly against this practice because biological males have an inherent physical advantage over females in athletic competitions.
We've seen many biological males dominating female sports.
As Khelif states, the Algerian boxer is not transgender.
Though we don't know the full story – as many medical records are kept private – we do know that the IBA (International Boxing Association) has said that Khelif tested positive for XY chromosomes.
However, there are rare cases where a person can have XY chromosomes but be born with female reproductive organs.
Algeria's Imane Khelif, who has XY chromosomes, competes in the women's 66kg semi-final boxing match during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
(MAURO PIMENTEL/AFP via Getty Images)
In many cases, that person is then raised as a girl because that is what the physical characteristics indicate.
That appears to be the case with Khelif, who has never denied the presence of XY chromosomes.
However, Khelif also had an obvious advantage over opponents in the Olympics. Khelif was taller, had more lean muscle mass and moved more quickly than the women in the opposing corners.
So, there still is a question about whether Khelif belongs in the women's category, even if Khelif feels like a woman and was raised as such.
It's a complicated issue, but the lawsuit will hopefully shed more light on the details in this particular case.