Imane Khelif has emerged victorious once again!
On Saturday, August 3, Imane Khelif (Algeria) defeated Anna Luca Hámori (Hungary) in a quarterfinal boxing match at the Paris 2024 Olympics.
Khelif, who is a cisgender woman, was subjected to vile and senseless harassment from transphobic celebrities and conservative pundits claiming that she was a trans woman and shouldn't have been allowed to compete in women's boxing. Not only are all forms of transphobia dangerous and unnecessary, but the Algerian boxer isn't even trans to begin with.
Knowing that she'd face Khelif in the next round, the Hungarian boxer quickly joined in by sharing problematic and disturbing posts on social media. Nonetheless, Khelif emerged victorious and advanced to the semifinals.
There had been some controversy regarding Khelif even before the 2024 Olympic Games. However, the false narrative that she's transgender picked up steam after her previous Olympic opponent, Italian boxer Angela Carini, withdrew from their fight and strongly implied that it was "unfair" for women to compete against Khelif.
In the words of Taylor Swift, "Karma is the breeze in my hair on the weekend," and Hámori did end up losing to Khelif despite leaning into the transphobic narrative against her opponent. Khelif has now moved on to the semifinals, which means that she's already secured an Olympic medal for herself and her country.
Algeria has only won one medal at the Paris 2024 Olympics thus far: a gold medal from Kaylia Nemour in the women's uneven bars in gymnastics. But given that Khelif is now guaranteed to win an Olympic medal in boxing, the country's tally is set to reach two medals very soon.
Khelif's next boxing match at the Olympic Games semifinals, against Janjaem Suwannapheng of Thailand, is scheduled for Tuesday, August 6.