Imane Khelif is an Olympic gold medalist and no one can take that away from her.
The Algerian boxer defeated China’s Yang Liu in the women’s 66kg (welterweight) final, 5-0, to cap off a dominant run through the tournament despite worldwide conspiracies and outright lies about her gender.
Khelif was born a woman, raised as a woman and competes as a woman in compliance with all IOC rules, and while the conversation around her — not to mention the relentless bullying — has become increasingly toxic, Khelif continued fighting her way to the podium until she was standing on top of it.
The 25-year-old has handled her Olympics experience with as much grace as anyone could have in her situation. Now, after all the bigotry and hatred she’s faced, she’ll be heading home with a gold medal and the support of her native country.
Khelif’s celebration after the match on Friday at Roland Garros really says it all.
