Harbhajan Singh says 'Take the Olympic gold back' after report claims boxer Imane Khelif is a 'biological man'

The gender controversy involving Algerian boxer Imane Khelif has erupted once again after a medical report that got leaked said that the Paris Olympics gold medallist is a “biological man”. Former India cricketer Harbhajan Singh has strongly responded to the report, opining that the Olympic gold medal that Imane won be taken back. “The Olympics wanted you to believe this is a WOMAN. Imane Khelif was allowed to beat up women and claim a gold medal. Those that stood up against the injustice were called ‘racist.’ Now, medical reports reveal Imane Khelif is in fact a MALE,” a post on “X” read.

To which, Harbhajan replied saying, “Take the Gold back @Olympics This isn’t fair”. The leaked medical report, which French journalist Djaffar Ait Aoudia was able to obtain, had said that Imane had “internal testicles and XY chromosomes”, and no ovaries or uterus.

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The medical report had been reportedly made in 2023 by experts from Kremlin-Bicetre Hospital in Paris and Mohamed Lamine Debaghine Hospital in Algiers.

In 2023, Khelif had been banned by the International Boxing Association (IBA) from competing in the gold medal fight of the Women’s World Boxing Championships in New Delhi after she failed to pass a gender identity assessment. In spite of this, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) had cleared Khelif to compete at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

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There was controversy when Khelif handed heavy blows to Italy’s Angela Carini in the first round. Carini eventually withdrew from the fight halfway through. Khelif went onto defeat China’s Yang Liu in the final to clinch gold in Paris.

After winning gold in the French capital, Khelif even filed a legal complaint for “online harassment”. British author JK Rowlig and Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk were reportedly named in the complaint filed by Imane, after the two had criticised Imane for being “a man”.

In August, Khelif had admitted to being a woman and not a man. “I’m a woman like any other woman. I was born as a woman, I live as a woman, and I am qualified,” the 25-year-old had said.