Boxer Imane Khelif has been praised online after a recent viral video unveiled her glamorous look outside of the ring.
The 25-year-old athlete's run at the 2024 Paris Olympics was riddled with controversy after she beat Italy’s Angela Carini on August 1.
Carini pulled out of the fight after just 46 seconds and fell to her knees, crying. She then allegedly stated: "It's not fair," before refusing to shake her opponent's hand after it was confirmed that she would not be advancing to the next round.
The match sparked uproar on social media, with many people - including high-profile figures like Elon Musk, Donald Trump, and J.K Rowling - speculating about Khelif's eligibility to compete in women's boxing.
Khelif is listed as a female on her passport and has been competing in women’s boxing since she started in the sport.
There were concerns over potential testosterone advantages as the athlete and Taiwanese boxer Lin Yu-ting were banned from last year's world championships by the IBA for failing to meet gender eligibility criteria.
However, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) criticized those tests as deeply flawed and has since barred the IBA over issues related to governance, alleged corruption, and ties to Russia.
Nevertheless, the public scrutiny and widespread misinformation only pushed Khelif harder as she advanced to the women’s welterweight (66kg) final on Friday (August 10) and defeated China's Yang Liu.
After becoming the first Algerian woman to claim the boxing gold, Khelif shared a defiant message to her critics, saying: “Whether I qualify or not, or whether I’m a woman or not, I have made many statements in the media," per News.com.au.
“I am fully qualified to take part in this competition. I am a woman like any other woman. I was born a woman, I lived a woman, I competed as a woman," she continued. "There’s no doubt about that. There are enemies of success - this is what I call them. That also gives my success a special test because of these attacks."
The Olympian gold medalist believes her “honor is intact now," and remarked that social media vitriol is now "meaningless".
“They impact the dignity of people and I think now people’s thinking has changed. As for the IBA, since 2018 I’ve been boxing under the umbrella of the IBA. They know me very well, they know what I am capable and they know how I have developed over the years," she concluded.
The young athlete underwent a stunning makeover after her tremendous victory, and it has left many fans speechless.
In a video shared on Beauty Code’s Instagram page, Khelif is seen sporting a black shirt with her hair tied back while punching toward the camera before the clip transitions to her wearing a floral top and matching earrings with her hair curled and vibrant pink makeup.
Watch the video below:Many supporters rushed to the comment section to compliment her looks, with one person writing: "The gorgeous queen," and another chimed in: "She’s sooo prettyyyy bro y’all just some haters."
"Her beauty is unique, I love that pretty smile without any trace of make-up, it radiates all the sun. She's what actually I consider a beautiful woman," a third sweetly added.
A fourth shared: "We all saw your true beauty that your soul reflects during the Olympic games. You look just stunning! Enjoy your victory. Enjoy your beauty."
Since facing vitriol online, Khelif has filed a criminal complaint in France over online harassment, naming both Elon Musk and JK Rowling.
Speaking to Variety, Nabil Boudi, a Paris-based attorney who is part of the National Center for the Fight Against Online Hatred prosecutor's office confirmed it received the complaint filed by the athlete against the platform X about what she had experienced during her time at the Olympics.
"On Aug. 13, (The National Center for the Fight Against Online Hatred) contacted the OCLCH (Central Office for the Fight Against Crimes Against Humanity and Hate Crimes) to conduct an investigation into the counts of cyber harassment due to gender, public insult because of gender, public incitement to discrimination and public insult because of origin," the statement read, as per the outlet.
Trump would be part of the investigation too, with the attorney explaining: “Trump tweeted, so whether or not he is named in our lawsuit, he will inevitably be looked into as part of the prosecution."
We wish Khelif the best.
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