During the Olympic Games, the Algerian boxer Imane Khelif received a lot of hate messages online – triggered by a gender debate. The gold medal winner is not going to take this lying down.
Following massive hostility towards the Algerian boxer Imane Khelif during the Olympic Games in Paris, the French judiciary is investigating. An investigation has been launched into cyberbullying based on gender, public insults and public calls for discrimination, the Paris public prosecutor’s office said in response to a request. The office for hate crimes and crimes against humanity is responsible. The public prosecutor’s office did not say who the investigation is directed against.
Many hostilities
According to the authorities, Khelif filed a complaint on Monday. Her lawyer Nabil Boudi wrote on the internet platform X that the investigation should show who was behind the “misogynistic, racist and sexist campaign” against the boxer. At the same time, it should also focus on those who fueled the “digital lynching”.
The fights of 25-year-old Khelif and 28-year-old Lin Yi-ting from Taiwan were accompanied by an emotional gender debate during the Olympics. The dispute over gender identity is increasingly being fought as a culture war, especially in conservative circles. The debate went far beyond the question of fair competition in sports and also reached the highest political circles. In the sociopolitically heated atmosphere, both athletes experienced a lot of hostility on the Internet.
Dispute between IOC and Boxing Association
Both boxers were excluded from the 2023 World Cup after gender tests that have not yet been explained in detail by the IBA, which is not recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). According to the IBA, both did not meet the required participation criteria and had “competitive advantages compared to other female participants.”
The IOC called it an “arbitrary decision without due process” and allowed Khelif and Lin to take part in Paris. The gender stated in the passport is decisive for admission to competitions in many sports, was one reason given.