DINH DOONG

The controversy surrounding Algerian boxer Iman Khalif and her biological gender has once again ignited fierce debate, especially following her gold medal victory at the 2024 Paris Olympics. What began as a curious story of a talented athlete has evolved into a global scandal, raising serious questions about gender identity, sports eligibility, and the Olympic Committee’s policies.

Khalif’s victory in the women’s 66 kg boxing category at the Paris Olympics was a moment of triumph for Algeria. However, her success was soon overshadowed by unsettling claims about her biological sex. A series of media reports began to circulate, alleging that Khalif was biologically male, based on leaked medical documents and claims made by French journalist Jafer 8 Odia.

In June 2023, Odia shared a controversial medical report written by endocrinologists Somaya Fidela and Jack Is Young, which suggested that Khalif has XY chromosomes, the typical chromosomal pattern of males. The report, which was reportedly prepared by experts at the Kremlin Vete Hospital in Paris and the Muhammad Lamin Theagain Hospital in Algiers, detailed several anomalies in Khalif’s biological development. According to the report, Khalif was born with testicles and a micropenis, with additional conditions like clitoral hypertrophy (a form of micropenis) and the absence of a uterus. The report further indicated that Khalif might be affected by a rare condition known as 5-alpha reductase deficiency, which causes abnormal male sexual development and can lead to the assignment of a female gender at birth.

While the authenticity of the medical findings has been debated, the leak of this report sparked a firestorm of controversy that has only intensified in the wake of Khalif’s Olympic gold medal win.

Khalif’s gold medal victory in Paris was followed by intense scrutiny, particularly regarding her match against Italian boxer Angela Karini, who quit in the first round, claiming she had never felt a punch like Khalif’s. This prompted a wave of speculation about Khalif’s physicality and whether it was fair for her to compete in the women’s category. As the controversy snowballed, public figures, including Elon Musk, J.K. Rowling, and former U.S. President Donald Trump, expressed doubts about Khalif’s sex on social media, drawing attention to the ongoing debate about gender-based sports policies and eligibility.

 

Despite this, her case has become emblematic of a larger issue within the world of sports: how should athletes with intersex conditions or ambiguous sex characteristics be classified? In 2023, Khalif was controversially disqualified from the World Boxing Championships after allegedly failing an eligibility test. The IOC and other governing bodies have struggled to define clear and fair guidelines for athletes whose gender identity or biological sex may not fit traditional binary categories.