Imane Khelif makes huge career announcement after winning Olympic gold medal amid gender row
Imane Khelif has announced her next move in boxing after winning a gold medal at the 2024 Olympic Games.
The Algerian boxer rose to prominence in the Paris Olympics last summer, but despite her impressive performances in the ring, she attracted headlines when she was part of a debate about her gender.
Khelif failed the International Boxing Association (IBA) gender eligibility tests at the World Championships last year but was allowed to compete at the Paris Games.
The association’s president, Umar Kremlev, claimed Khelif and Taiwan boxer Lin Yu-Ting had 'XY chromosomes and were thus excluded from the sports events'.
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IBA was stripped of its world governing body status after Rio 2016, and the governance of Olympic boxing was taken over by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), which has since disputed the validity of the previous IBA tests.
Both boxers are registered as females on their birth certificates, but this did not stop a barrage of misinformation, which led to widespread abuse of both athletes last summer.
However, after answering her critics with exceptional performances, which earned her a gold medal, she is looking to further her boxing career by turning professional.
"I would like to hold a press conference today to share with you my success story with the media family and young women who watch me,” Khelif said in a press conference last Sunday.
"There is a documentary being prepared about my success story, and it will be shown on international platforms.
"I will soon enter the world of professional boxing, I have many offers.
"Currently, I have not made up my mind about where I will enter professional boxing.
"But very soon I will take this step, we as Algerians, would like to see our level in the field of professionalism."
To add to her triumph in Paris, Khelif previously captured a silver medal at the 2022 World Championships, as well as several other gold medals from various other amateur competitions during her career.
Despite the negative attention thrust her way in Paris, this may benefit her in the paid ranks. Khelif is one of the most well-known females in world boxing despite never having a pro-fight.
Her popularity, mixed with her skill, could set her on her way to a successful career, with promotors no doubt clamouring for her signature.
Luke Davies