Imane Khelife, the boxer from Algeria, believes that his daughter is the target of “immoral” remarks.
After her female opponent, Angela Carini, withdrew from their Olympic match after just 46 seconds, Khelife garnered international attention.
Khelife, 25, was one of two athletes thrown out of last year’s world championships in New Delhi after failing to meet gender eligibility criteria.
Now her father, Amar Khelife, has slammed the critics and said the controversy is part of “a ploy” to stop his daughter from winning a medal at the Olympics.
Speaking on Friday, August 2, he replied –
“The attacks against her are immoral, it is not fair.
“Imane is a little girl that has loved sports since she was six years old, she used to play football.
“These critics and rumours aim to destabilize Imane, they don’t want her to be the champion of the world.
“I tell her prove them wrong in the ring and I hope that she will honour Algeria and Arabic countries and win the gold medal.
“She is our role model, and we want to be like her and honour Algeria and Tiaret.
He went on to show an official document dated May 2, 1999, which states that Khelife Imane was born a female.
Meanwhile, Algeria reacted to a photo of Angela Carini crying after her bout with Khelife.
“Cry more,” Algeria FC wrote on X.
