Controversial Olympic boxing star pleads with the public to 'refrain from bullying'

Newly crowned Olympic boxing champion Imane Khelif has pleaded with the public not to "bully" athletes after facing huge backlash for allegedly being a transgender woman.

According to the Metro, Khelif said: "It can destroy people. It can kill people's spirits, thoughts, and minds and it can divide people. Because of that, I ask them to refrain from bullying."

The comments come after Khelif had not taken kindly to digital warfare that has questioned her gender and Olympic accomplishments. She's taken legal action against powerful individuals like Elon Musk and J.K. Rowling in order to put a stop to the harassment she has received online.

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Variety confirmed via Khelif's attorney that the Olympic champion submitted a criminal complaint to the Paris Prosecutor's Office. The complaint allegedly accuses individuals of "acts of aggravated cyber harassment".

The Central Office for the Fight Against Crimes Against Humanity and Hate Crimes confirmed they are investigating the counts due to "gender, public insult because of gender, public incitement to discrimination and public insult because of origin".

Nabil Boudi is Imane Khelif's lawyer, and is giving the French authorities a lot of latitude when it comes to investigating those who went after Khelif on gender grounds during the Olympics. According to Variety, this also allows French authorities to investigate burner accounts that may have slandered Khelif.

Elon Musk shared a post and responded to a post from swimmer Riley Gaines, where the latter said "men don't belong in women's sports." The CEO of X replied, "absolutely".

Meanwhile, renowned author J.K. Rowling posted that Khelif was a man "enjoying the distress of a woman he's just punched in the head".

American presidential candidate Donald Trump is also caught up in the firestorm. He posted a message saying, "I will keep men out of women's sports!"

These messages all stem from one of Imane Khelif's Olympic fights, where she squared off against Italy's Angela Carini.

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Carini withdrew from the bout just 46 seconds in, saying that the fight was "unjust", according to The New York Post and other outlets.

There was speculation about Khelif's gender identity, as she was disqualified by the International Boxing Association in 2023 after it was believed she had XY chromosomes and heightened testosterone levels.

According to People's website, Khelif was born as a female and does not identify as transgender. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) believed that Khelif was legitimately allowed to compete as a female without issue, and she qualified for the Olympics via the normal path.

Omar Khelif, Imane's father, told Sky News, "I raised her to be hard-working and brave. She has a strong will to work and to train. The Italian opponent she faced was unable to defeat my daughter because my daughter was stronger and she was softer."

Omar Khelif told USA Today that Imane "is a little girl that has loved sport since she was six years old."

Carini told Italian newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport, "All this controversy makes me sad. I'm sorry for my opponent too. If the IOC said she can fight, I respect that decision."

The BBC's website believes that it may be difficult for French authorities to take action against Musk, Rowling, Trump, or anyone who made comments about Khelif outside of French borders. However, it seems possible that anyone who said inaccurate or slanderous things about Khelif while in France could face a punishment.

Despite the deluge of attention she received throughout the Olympics, Khelif was able to win the gold medal after defeating China's Yang Liu.

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