Algerian boxer Imane Khelif, who was at the centre of a gender row following her victory at the Paris 2024 Olympics, has filed a formal legal complaint, citing being the victim of online harassment.
According to her lawyer, the boxer won the gold medal in the women's welterweight category on Friday. Both Khelif and Taiwanese Lin Yu-ting were in the spotlight at the mega sports tournament due to a dispute that made headlines.
The issue was debated endlessly on social media with netizens including British author JK Rowling and Tesla CEO Elon Musk raising questions about Khelif's gender, after which the woman was accused of playing a female sport while being a biological male.
The Algerian athlete's lawyer, Nabil Boudi, told Reuters in an interview that the complaint was filed on Friday.
“Everything that is said about me on social media is immoral. I want to change the opinion of people around the world,” Khelif said on Saturday.
On Friday, Khelif defeated Liu to win the gold medal in women's welterweight boxing.
The gold medallist, who won by unanimous decision, is the first Algerian woman to win an Olympic boxing title and the first boxer from her country to win gold since Hocine Soltani at Atlanta 1996. Women's boxing has been in the Olympic Games since London 2012.
“I'm very happy. It's my dream. I've been dreaming for eight years. I'm an Olympic champion, a gold medallist. I'm very happy. I've been working for eight years,” said Khelif, 25.
“Eight years without sleep. Eight years tired. Now I am an Olympic champion. I am very happy. I want to thank all the people who came to support me. The people of Algeria and all the people of Paris.”
