Paris Olympics 2024 Row: Debate Over Gender And Transphobic Hate In Sports

The Paris Olympics 2024 has been catching all the headlines, with 206 nations and over 10,000 athletes participating. Sports enthusiasts from all over the world have been keenly keeping up with the m...

Paris Olympics 2024 Row: Debate Over Gender And Transphobic Hate In Sports
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The Paris Olympics 2024 has been catching all the headlines, with 206 nations and over 10,000 athletes participating. Sports enthusiasts from all over the world have been keenly keeping up with the matches. Meanwhile, a storm is brewing concerning the Olympics following a women’s category boxing match between Imane Khelif and Angela Carini. 

Imane Khelif Gives A Heavy Blow To Angela Carini

A controversial match occurred between Algerian boxer Imane Khelif and Italy’s Angela Carini, where Khelif knocked down opponent Carini after which she withdrew from the match in just 46 seconds. Khelif won the match, and Carini suffered a nose injury and claimed it to be the hardest someone had ever hit in a game. She fell to the floor and broke down while refusing to shake Khelif’s hand.

Netizens Slam Olympics For Its Unfairness In Women Category Games

A row spurred over the internet where social media users claimed that Imane Khelif is a ‘biological male’ competing in women’s category boxing. Khelif received heavy criticism and bigotry, to which she hasn’t reacted so far. Many users on ‘X’ including renowned author J.K. Rowling immediately assumed Khelif’s identity to be that of a biological male. YouTuber and actor Jake Paul also condemned the Olympics stating that it was unfair to have a male compete in women’s category games. 

Imane Khelif Born Female At Birth, Donald Trump Clarifies

However, despite these speculations, it has been clarified that Imane Khelif was born female, is legally considered a female, and has always been competing in women’s category games. Furthermore, she has never identified herself as intersex or transgender. Former President of the U.S. Donald Trump came forward to join the inaccurate identification of Khelif as a biological male. Upon further fact-checking, conservatives had only assumed Khelif’s identity as a male because of her physical buildup without any proof. 

High Testosterone Levels Led Khelif To Fail Gender Eligibility Test

While Khelif is not transgender or a biological male and was assigned female at birth, she has a condition called differences of sex development (DSD). As a result, Khelif although a female, has XY chromosomes and also has higher testosterone levels. Her elevated testosterone levels also led her to fail a gender eligibility test at the 2023 World Boxing Championship, where she was later disqualified for the same reason. These discrepancies in her chromosomes and physical characteristics have led to a spur regarding the fairness of the Olympic match.