Algerian boxer Imane Khelif remained in the news throughout the Paris Olympics 2024 campaign. Labeled as a biological man by many, Khelif went on to secure a gold medal in the women’s 66kg category despite her eligibility for the competition being questioned by many. Months after the conclusion of the Paris Games, a new controversy erupted after a leaked medical report confirmed that Khelif, was in fact, a man. Even former India cricketer Harbhajan Singh reacted to the report, tagging the Olympics on social media while asking them to take the gold medal awarded to the Algerian back.
As per the leaked medal report, which French journalist Djaffar Ait Aoudia was able to secure, the Algerian boxer has internal testicles and XY chromosomes. The condition, as per the report, hints at a disorder called 5-alpha reductase insufficiency.
The report was said to be drafted by experts from the Kremlin-Bicetre Hospital in Paris and the Mohamed Lamine Debaghine Hospital in Algiers in June 2023. In the detailed report, Khelif’s biological traits, such as the existence of internal testicles and the lack of a uterus have been thoroughly described. Even an MRI report suggested the presence of a micropenis, as reported by Redux.
In 2023, Khelif was banned by the International Boxing Association (IBA) from participating in the World Championship Gold Medal fight in New Delhi.
In fact, US presidential candidate Donald Trump even used Khelif’s example in an ad campaign criticising the Biden-Harris administration’s gender-ad sports policy, hoping to help his case by converting the controversy into an election issue.
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