The Paris 2024 Olympic were likely to be the site of many controversies. And despite the various complaints and reports, nothing caused more outrage among the population than the false accusations directed at Imane Khelif, who was supposedly a trans woman participating in the women's boxing competition.

 Image credits: sportingnews.com


Who is Imane Khelif and what's happening?
Imane is a 25 year old Algerian boxer and after a fight that lasted 46 seconds against the Italian Angela Carini, who gave up the fight after being hit in the nose, the boxer became the target of one of the biggest controversies of the Paris Olympics.
This event triggered a series of false accusations and reactions, mainly online and on social network X, formerly Twitter.
People started saying, without any basis and motivated by transphobic speeches, that Imane is a trans woman. 
This disinformation campaign and prejudiced attacks could even put the boxer's life and well-being at risk in her home country once that in Algeria it is a crime to be LGBTQIA+, and a place whose laws do not respect or recognize the civil rights of this community would not consider sending a transsexual fighter to represent it. 
These problems and rumors started about 1 year ago, when Imane Khelif and Taiwanese Lin Yu-ting, were disqualifiedfrom the Women's World Championship in New Delhi, India, by the IBA (International Boxing Association) because they “failed to meet the eligibility criteria to participate in the women’s competition”. At the time, the press reported that the Algerian boxer was disqualified because she contains a high level of testosterone in her body -what doesn't make her a biological male-. However, the Algerian Olympic Committee denied this information and stated that Imane was disqualified for "medical reasons".
The IBA was even banned of the Olympic Games by the IOC In June 2023, for recurring failures in integrity and transparency in governance, accused of corruption and match-fixing.
What happens is that Imane suffers from Complete Gonadal Dysgenesis (Swyer), where we have an individual who has female genital organs, both external and internal, even with XY chromosomes. 
Imane has a vagina. She has a uterus. The Y chromosome that she carries in her karyotype did not determine any male characteristic.
And beyond any anatomical or embryological finding, she identifies as a woman.
Despite all the fake news, Khelif is indeed a cis woman. At a press conference, Mark Adams, the official International Olympic Committee (IOC) spokesman, declared that "The Algerian boxer was born female, registered as female, lived her life as a female, and boxed as a female. She even has a female passport. This is not a transgender case.”
Here in Brazil we also have a similar story.
This is the judoka Edinanci Silva, an intersex person. Her story is one of overcoming and victory despite prejudice, and is worth reading.
 

Image credits: uol.com.br

Fake News and transphobia also impact cis women


Image credits: Reproduction from the internet


Even with all the dissemination of misinformation, promoted even by public figures such as Elon Musk, JK Rowling and even Brazilian names such as Nikolas Ferreira, Imane didn't let herself be shaken.



Image credits: Reproduction from the internet 

The boxer won the Paris Olympics with a gold medal and has launched a criminal investigation that will determine who initiated this misogynistic, racist and sexist campaign. It will also focus on investigating who fueled this digital lynching.

With all this happening, it is urgent to understand that transphobia and the persecution of the gender debate cruelly affect all women. All of them, without exception. 
It is unacceptable that someone is attacked and threatened just for not following the concept of what it means to be a woman or the model of femininity. 

All women need to be free in their bodies.

Sources:

Reporter: Letícia Vieira
Editor: Cleidyane