Algerian boxer, Imane Khelif, has vehemently debunked claims of her being a transgender woman, clarifying that she is a woman and thus deserves to compete in the women’s boxing division at the Olympic Games.
She emphasised that she has lived her life as a woman because she was born a woman and has made several clarifications about her gender in the past.
Speaking at a press conference after winning the gold medal, she labelled people who questioned her gender as ‘enemies of success’, adding that they nonetheless made her success better than she would have imagined.
“As for whether I qualify or not, whether I am a woman or not, I have made many statements in the media,” Khelif said as quoted by theguardian.com.
“I am fully qualified to take part in this competition. I’m a woman, like any other woman. I was born a woman, I lived a woman, I competed as a woman, there’s no doubt about that. [The detractors] are enemies of success, that is what I call them. And that also gives my success a special taste because of these attacks. My honour is intact now,” she added.
Imane Khelif won the gold medal in the Women’s 65kg after beating Taiwanese boxer Lin Yu-Ting who was also accused of being a transgender woman.