Olympic boxing champ Imane Khelif taking legal action over ‘XY chromosome’ claim

Imane Khelif, the boxer who won Olympic gold amid a gender eligibility row, is taking legal action over media reports allegedly detailing her leaked medical records, the International Olympic Committee has said.

Reports published in France this week claimed the 25-year-old has XY (male) chromosomes.

The boxer took gold in the women’s welterweight competition at this summer’s Games in Paris amid huge controversy after the International Boxing Association said the Algerian had been disqualified from last year’s World Championships for failing gender eligibility criteria.

Khelif’s first opponent in Paris, Italian fighter Angela Carini, signalled she could not continue with their bout 46 seconds in, saying she “had never felt a punch like this”.

Khelif filed a legal complaint with the French authorities over the online abuse and harassment she was subjected to during the Games and the IOC said on Wednesday she was now also taking action over new reports which emerged in France earlier this week.

It also said it was “saddened” by the abuse Khelif had received since her appearance in Paris.

“We understand that Imane Khelif has taken legal action against individuals who commented on her situation during the Olympic Games Paris 2024, and is also preparing a lawsuit in response to the latest reporting,” an IOC spokesperson said.

“The IOC will not comment while legal action is ongoing, or on media reports about unverified documents whose origin cannot be confirmed.”

The statement pointed out Khelif had been competing in women’s boxing “for many years”, including at the previous Games in Tokyo as well as IBA-sanctioned events.

The IBA was stripped of recognition by the IOC last year over governance failures. That meant it was the