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Controversial Algerian boxer who failed gender tests wins gold medal in women's boxing at Olympics
Photo by Richard Pelham/Getty Images

Controversial Algerian boxer who failed gender tests wins gold medal in women's boxing at Olympics

The decisive victory only spurred more criticism online.

A boxer with male sex chromosomes took the gold medal in women's middleweight boxing at the Paris Olympics despite public uproar denouncing the rules that allowed the unfair competition.

Imane Khelif of Algeria won a decisive victory 5-0 on Friday over China’s Yang Liu.

'My objection, and that of many others, is to male violence against women becoming an Olympic sport.'

"For eight years, this has been my dream, and I'm now the Olympic champion and gold medalist," Khelif said through an interpreter, according to ESPN.

Both the International Boxing Association and the World Boxing Organization found that Khelif was biologically a man, but the International Olympic Committee decided to allow Khelif to box in the women's category despite the finding.

"That also gives my success a special taste because of those attacks," Khelif responded when asked about the criticism. "We are in the Olympics to perform as athletes, and I hope that we will not see any similar attacks in future Olympics."

Khelif has previously blamed a "conspiracy" against Algeria for the criticism.

"People have conspired against Algeria so that its flag doesn't get raised, and it doesn't win the gold medal," the boxer said.

The gold medal is Algeria's first in women's boxing.

Among those most critical of the gender debacle was world-famous author J.K. Rowling.

"Commentators pretending critics of the IOC’s reliance on documents rather than sex testing think Khelif is trans are straw-manning. I don’t claim Khelif is trans. My objection, and that of many others, is to male violence against women becoming an Olympic sport," she wrote on X.

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