French Prosecutors Launch Investigation into Online Harassment of Olympic Boxer Imane Khelif
Olympic boxing champion Imane Khelif has become the target of a barrage of criticism and false claims about her gender during the Olympics, prompting French prosecutors to open an investigation into a complaint of online harassment.
The athlete’s lawyer, Nabil Boudi, filed a complaint on Friday with the special unit of the Paris prosecutor’s office responsible for combating hate speech on the Internet. Boudi claimed that Khelif had been the victim of a “misogynistic, racist, and sexist campaign” despite winning gold in the women’s welterweight category and becoming a heroine in her native Algeria and a global icon for women’s boxing.
The prosecutor’s office has opened an investigation into gender-based cyberbullying, gender-based public insults, public incitement to discrimination, and public insults based on origin. Khelif found herself at the center of controversy over sexual identity and the regulation of the sport after her first fight in Paris, where her Italian opponent Angela Carini withdrew from the match citing pain caused by the first punches.
False claims that Khelif was transgender or a man have circulated online, prompting the International Olympic Committee to defend her and denounce those spreading misinformation. Khelif has stated that spreading misconceptions about her “undermines human dignity.”
Donald Trump, Elon Musk, and JK Rowling are among those who have spread misinformation about the athlete. Khelif’s complaint was filed against social media platforms, including X, rather than against a specific perpetrator, a common formulation in French law that leaves it up to investigators to determine the person or organization that may have committed the wrongdoing.
The Paris prosecutor’s office has not named any specific suspects. The case comes two days after Khelif returned to Algeria, where she is expected to meet President Abdelmadjid Tebboune and be welcomed by her family in her hometown of Ain Mesbah.
