Imane Khelif has asked Donald Trump to stay out of sports after he called her a man following her Olympic gold medal.
Trump mocked her at a rally in Montana following the Algerian boxer’s gold medal in France last weekend, falsely saying that Khelif, who has faced intense global scrutiny over whether her gender qualified her to compete in women’s boxing, was transgender.
The boxer has since filed a lawsuit in France for cyberbullying, reportedly naming Elon Musk and JK Rowling. And she didn’t spare Trump her ire in an interview in Algeria with El Birad.
“Right after that there was a lot of noise from politicians, athletes, stars, artists – Elon Musk and Donald Trump – and it hurt me a lot. I can’t describe how scared I was,” said Khelif, 25.
“This touched me. I’m not lying to you, it touched me very much. It hurt a lot. I can’t describe the fear I had, but thank God I was able to overcome it. Thank God all the people in Algeria and the Arab world knew Imane Khelif with her femininity, her courage, her will.”
Imane Khelif told Donald Trump to stay away from sports after he called her a man
Donald Trump targeted Imane Khelif during his final rally in Bozeman, Montana last Friday
“It was a very scary scenario. Honestly, I don’t like to bring politics into sports, but they brought politics into sports.
‘Sports and politics are two separate things. These politicians who oppress me have no right to say that I am transgender.
“This is a great shame for my family, for the honor of my family, for the honor of Algeria, for the women of Algeria and especially the Arab world. The whole world knows that I am a Muslim girl.”
Trump, speaking in Bozeman, said: “Who wants men to compete in women’s sports? I want to congratulate the young woman who has gone from a man to a woman. He… She won gold.
“And what about that woman, that beautiful woman, from Italy? She went there and had no idea what was going on. She’s a very good boxer – but only against other women.”
He was referring to Angela Carini, who last week gave up her fight with Khelif after 46 seconds after being punched in the nose. She was in tears and said she had never been hit so hard.
Trump reenacted the blow and then said, “He did this. She immediately said, ‘Wow, nobody’s ever hit me that hard.’
“Then he does it again and she immediately gives up.”
Khelif is now back in Algeria celebrating her Olympic gold won in France
Khelif pictured kissing her gold medal after winning the women’s 66kg category
Khelif, who is not a transgender woman, is said to have male ‘XY chromosomes’, which led to her disqualification from the 2023 World Championships after she failed an unknown gender test from the now-banned International Boxing Association.
Speaking in France after winning gold, Khelif said with tears in his eyes: ‘For eight years this was my dream and now I am an Olympic champion and gold medalist.
“That also gives my success a special touch because of those attacks. We are at the Olympic Games to perform as athletes, and I hope that we will not see similar attacks at the Olympic Games in the future.
“I am fully qualified to participate in this competition. I am a woman like any other woman. I was born as a woman, I live as a woman and I am qualified.”