Gender controversy swirls around Olympic gold medalist after new report sheds light on medical tests
Olympic gold medalist boxer Imane Khelif was embroiled in another gender controversy over the weekend after World Boxing declared that the athlete would be unable to compete until a sex test was completed.
3 Wire Sports, citing medical documents from chromosome tests given by the International Boxing Association (IBA) before the 2022 and 2023 world championships, reported that Khelif's DNA showed "markers with male karyotypes."
"Chromosome analysis reveals Male karyotype. No numerical or chromosomal anomalies detected at 450-550 banding resolution," a screenshot of the document on 3 Wire Sports read. The test was at an accredited lab in New Delhi, called Dr. Lal PathLabs, before the boxing championships.
Fox News Digital reached out to World Boxing, the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the Algerian Olympic Committee and reps for Khelif for comment.
Khelif was disqualified from the 2023 championships before a gold medal bout over gender eligibility issues. IBA President Umar Kremlev released a statement to Russia's TASS Agency about why Khelif was disqualified.
"Based on DNA tests, we identified a number of athletes who tried to trick their colleagues into posing as women. According to the results of the tests, it was proved that they have XY chromosomes. Such athletes were excluded from competition," Kremlev said.
The Algerian Olympic Committee said at the time that Khelif was disqualified for "medical reasons." Algerian media reported that Khelif was disqualified for high testosterone levels, according to Reuters.
"There are some countries that did not want Algeria to win a gold medal," Khelif told Algerian Ennahar TV. "This is a conspiracy and a big conspiracy, and we will not be silent about it."
Khelif was thrust into the global spotlight after qualifying for the Olympics, with the gender controversy coming to light. Khelif defeated Angela Carini in the initial fight during the Paris Olympics, but the IOC defended Khelif.
"Everyone competing in the women's category is complying with the competition eligibility rules," said IOC spokesperson Mark Adams. "They are women in their passports, and it's stated that this is the case, that they are female."
Then, the IBA doubled down, saying Khelif – along with Taiwan's Lin Yu-thing – were disqualified from the world championships due to "a result of their failure to meet the eligibility criteria for participating in the women's competition, as set and laid out in the IBA Regulations. This decision, made after a meticulous review, was extremely important and necessary to uphold the level of fairness and utmost integrity of the competition."
The IBA added that Khelif underwent two tests: one in 2022 and the other in 2023. The IBA said Khelif appealed the decision to the Court for Arbitration of Sport but withdrew during the process, making the "IBA decision legally binding."
As the controversy grew, Khelif kept on winning and eventually was awarded a gold medal.
Throughout the entire controversy, Khelif has maintained that their gender is female. Khelif even filed a lawsuit against detractors and critics on social media.
Before World Boxing made its decision, Khelif was planning on participating in the 2028 Olympics despite President Donald Trump's "No Men in Women's Sports" executive order was signed.
Khelif told ITV that the policies do not apply to the boxer.
"I will give you a straightforward answer: the U.S. president issued a decision related to transgender policies in America. I am not transgender. This does not concern me, and it does not intimidate me. That is my response," Khelif told the outlet.
"For me, I see myself as a girl, just like any other girl. I was born a girl, raised as a girl, and have lived my entire life as one."
World Boxing said last week that Khelif must take a sex test before being able to compete in sanctioned fights.
"Imane Khelif may not participate in the female category at the Eindhoven Box Cup, 5-10 June 2025 and any World Boxing event until Imane Khelif undergoes genetic sex screening in accordance with World Boxing's rules and testing procedures," a letter sent by World Boxing to the Algerian Boxing Federation read.
The letter also stated that World Boxing decided to adopt mandatory sex tests this month.
"These new eligibility rules were developed with the express purpose of safeguarding athletes in combat sports, particularly given the physical risks associated with Olympic-style boxing," the letter read.
World Boxing added in a statement that the new policies are "designed solely to ensure the health and safety of all participants in World Boxing competitions (including Imane Khelif) and is not deemed to in any way pre-judge the outcome of any testing that will be introduced as part of the new policy on 'Sex, Age and Weight.'"
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