PARIS (AP) — Crowds of women have shown up at Imane Khelif’s fights during the Paris Olympics to rally around the Algerian boxer as she faced online abuse over misconceptions about her sex.
Hours before Khelif won a gold medal in the women’s welterweight division Friday night, women arrived at Roland Garros wrapped in Algerian flags, many with no interest in boxing, but with the sole aim at supporting the 25-year-old boxer thrust into a worldwide clash over gender identity and regulation in sports.
“I’m super happy that she got here, and I’m here to support her because she needs it, and she needs women to support her,” said Sarah Dayan, sitting on a bench with miniature Algerian flags hanging above it.
Khelif and fellow boxer Lin Yu-ting of Taiwan have been heavily scrutinized by those bringing up their disqualification from the world championships last year. The Olympics- banned International Boxing Association claimed the two fighters failed unspecified eligibility tests for women’s competition.
The International Olympic Committee has called the arbitrary sex tests that the sport’s governing body imposed on the two boxers irretrievably flawed and has defended both boxers since the start of the Paris Games.
The situation is reflective of historical mistreatment of female athletes of color, as they have faced disproportionate scrutiny and discrimination when it comes to sex testing and false claims that they are male or transgender, experts say.
“People are so afraid of strong women,” said Dayan, who didn’t know who Khelif was before the start of the Olympics but followed the backlash against her online. “People are so afraid of strong women of color. And I think this is so beautiful that she’s here and that she’s fighting through. And she’s going to win.”
Khelif did not lose a round on a judge’s scorecard in Paris, going on the most dominant run of her boxing career since her first opponent, Angela Carini of Italy abandoned their bout after just 46 seconds, saying she was in too much pain from Khelif’s punches.
Khelif defeated Yang Liu of China 5:0 Friday in front of a passionate crowd that chanted her name throughout the three-round bout.
For many of them, whether she won or not wasn’t even all that important. They were there just to show support.
Agnes Lipeb, who’s from Versailles, France, said she had no idea how boxing rules work but was there to cheer for Khelif and have fun.
“I feel like the mistreatment and the bullying that she received from the whole world is just insane,” Lipeb said. “And I feel like she needs more love than ever.”
After her unanimous win, Khelif posed for cameras before jumping into her coaches’ arms. One of them put her on his shoulders and carried her around the arena in a victory lap as she pumped her fists and grabbed an Algerian flag from someone in the crowd.
Lisa Belabed, who lives in Paris and has Algerian roots, called Khelif inspirational.
“One week ago, I didn’t know about boxing,” said Belabed, wearing a white shirt with the boxer’s face on it. “But I’m here because of what happened to Imane Khelif. I think what happened to her — like the whole media frenzy — is really unfair and unjustified. I think she was scapegoated into something really political when she’s just trying to do sports.”
The only events at the Paris Olympics that Belabed has attended are Khelif’s. She watched Khelif defeat Janjaem Suwannapheng of Thailand 5:0 in the semifinals Tuesday and was back at the final to support a fellow Algerian woman.
“I think what happened to her is both sexist and racist,” Belabed said. “My parents are from Algeria, and I grew up in France. I think Algerian women, and people from the North African diaspora are used to being told that we don’t fit the European beauty standards. And so what happened to her is quite relatable, even though it happened to her on a huge scale.”
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