Transgender Boxer’s Victory Sparks Controversy at Arab Sports Games

Imane Khelif’s victory sparked a major controversy on social media. Moroccan Internet users denounced the victory of the Algerian boxer, admitting that they do not understand why the Royal Moroccan Boxing Federation (FRMB) allowed Belahbib’s participation in this tournament and this duel against what they consider to be "a male".

The national technical director, Othmane Fadli, had nevertheless expressed his opposition to the holding of this fight, but he was not heard by the organizers, indicates a well-informed source at the Moroccan National Olympic Committee to H24Info, specifying that the latter had made Imane Khelif participate, in the absence of a final decision from the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) and the official decision of the IBA, the International Amateur Boxing Association.

The same source adds that attention is now focused on the International Olympic Committee (IOC), which is responsible for authorizing or not the transgender boxer to participate in the qualifying events for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. The Moroccan National Olympic Committee and the FRMB "are eagerly awaiting this decision to take the appropriate measures in this regard".

For his part, the president of the FRMB, Jaouad Belhaj, prefers not to comment on the subject for the moment, "pending an official decision in consultation with the Moroccan National Olympic Committee". Khelif had already been disqualified in March by the IBA at the women’s world boxing championship for non-compliance with the "eligibility criteria", in particular a high level of testosterone in her body.