Will Olympic gold medalist Imane Khelif become a professional boxer?

Imane Khelif was one of the stories of 2024 – and she could become the talking point of 2025 if she’s successful in her bid to turn professional. In case you missed it, Khelif won gold in the women’s 66kg boxing tournament at the Paris Olympics amid accusations that she’s a biological male.

Khelif, from Algeria, wasn’t the only one in the eye of the sex storm. Taiwan’s Lin Yu-ting also won gold, at 57kg, despite the International Boxing Association (IBA) informing the International Olympic Committee (IOC) that both Khelif and Lin had been disqualified from the previous year’s amateur world boxing championships after failing “gender tests”.

What would ordinarily be a red flag – or at the very least, a cause for concern – was dismissed by the IOC, who inferred the testing procedure and results were not from a credible source. The reason? After much legal toing and froing that came to a halt one year before the Paris Games, the IOC successfully stripped the IBA (formerly AIBA) of the right to govern Olympic boxing due to years of financial irregularities and widespread mismanagement. For an indicator of the severity of the charges levelled at the IBA, it represented the first time in Olympic history that a sporting governing body had been expelled.

Given what plenty inside the boxing industry knew about the IBA’s past, the IOC’s position was understandable, particularly when one considers the mixed messaging that surrounded the announcement of those ‘failed’ tests. Every day there was a lack of clarity, and thus, all we really came to know was that the finer details would not be divulged. In the outside world, however, the damage had been done: Khelif and Lin were universally perceived as men knowingly masquerading as women – making something of a mockery of the confidentiality laws that supposedly prevented the IBA from telling all.

Standing firm on their stance against the IBA – and it’s a grudge that seemingly works both ways – the IOC instead relied on the boxers’ passports and their respective international sporting federations for evidence of their gender; both were registered as female at birth and fought exclusively against females during their boxing careers. Though both were top class competitors, neither were destroying all-comers, and both had encountered numerous defeats during their careers. Furthermore, despite some cruel commentary to the contrary in the summer – predominantly anchored by their ‘masculine’ appearance – there should be no debate that both had lived the life of a female, and identified as such, all their lives.

Both were permitted to compete in Paris, with each earning a gold medal in August. Perhaps that’s where the Netflix series about Khelif, which is reportedly in post-production, will conclude. Reality isn’t so easy to manipulate, however.

In November, Lin was due to compete at the World Boxing Cup in Sheffield, England, at an event organized by World Boxing – an amateur governing body born from chaos surrounding, and as a rival to, the IBA. Lin was pulled out by the Taiwan Sports Authority (TSA), who cited concerns about World Boxing, shortly before she was due to compete. Neither party could satisfactorily explain why Lin had really been removed, though there was speculation that the TSA opted against stoking the still-simmering fire of controversy. 

New smoke had appeared in the form of an article published in France that alleged Khelif had been born with a rare disorder that prevented the development of typical genitalia. It suggested, though facts remain elusive, that she was erroneously declared female at birth. In the meantime, reports emerged that Khelif was training in America and hoping to start her professional career there. Within weeks, at their annual end-of-year conventions, two sanctioning bodies – the World Boxing Council (WBC) and the World Boxing Association (WBA) – voiced concerns about either being allowed to turn professional. 

“What it comes down to, is the integrity of our sport and the safety of women boxers,” said Gilberto Mendoza, head of the WBA, the professional rankings body who work alongside the IBA.

Mauricio Sulaiman, Mendoza’s counterpart at the WBC (an organization who have long opposed the IBA), said after attempting to explain a difficult issue: “Any person born woman can only fight against any person born woman, and vice-versa. Is that absolutely clear? I think, yes.”

The status of Khelif and Lin is far from ‘absolutely clear’ and all sanctioning bodies can do is refuse to rank a fighter – they cannot stop them from obtaining a licence. It would appear, however, that a licence from a reputable commission will now only be granted should they ‘pass’ said gender tests, namely one that identifies the infrastructure of chromosomes. That neither boxer has yet come forward to partake should be a cause for alarm, says Dr Nina Radcliff, a well-regarded physician, a representative of the WBA and, by association, a supporter of the IBA. 

During the summer it was suggested but not proven that the Y chromosome had been detected in both Khelif and Lin following the tests that resulted in their removal from the 2023 world championships. And should that particular chromosome indeed be present, medical facts make the boxers’ wishes to compete against women problematic.

Radcliff claims that the Y chromosome – the male chromosome – will never be present in a female body, irrespective of future treatment or surgery. As such, the Y chromosome ensures the body will develop male characteristics – typically increased muscle mass, bigger bone structure, higher levels of testosterone and greater heart and lung capacity – which tend to become pronounced during and post puberty. 

It should of course be simple to differentiate males and females at birth but there is, in a tiny percentage of cases, margin for error if the reproductive organ doesn’t fit the known definition of a male and thus the baby might be presumed female – particularly, Radcliff infers more than once, if born without the help of educated medical professionals. 

“Sex is biological, it is identified at birth, and it does not change; it is not about identity; it is solely based on chromosomes and visible characteristics,” she explains. “We have three trillion cells in our body and each cell has a set of chromosomes – which is DNA,” she continues. “These are thread-like structures, and they are the blueprint of how each cell should work. It gives us our physical characteristics, our personality, everything is in the genes.”

Though males and females will each have 22 pairs of chromosomes (autosomes) that are essentially the same, the 23rd pair is what determines the sex. Females have two X chromosomes while males have one X and one Y. This can never change, Radcliff again insists.

She explains how the cell construction, decided at the point of fertilization, can differ between males and females once physical maturity is reached: “For athletic events, and in terms of strength, speed and power, men typically outperform women by 10 to 30 per cent.”

Without wishing to baffle with science, Radcliff feels it important to note the reasons why there is such a difference: In short, males will dwell longer in puberty than females, therefore their increased exposure to testosterone typically means their bones and muscles will naturally grow larger and stronger. Also, Radcliff explains, males will see an increase in their red blood cells, and in turn larger lungs and more robust hearts, which manifests in superior stamina. 

To remove the suggestion of unfairness – or perhaps more pertinently at this juncture, to stop the vilification of Khelif and Lin – transparent testing needs to occur.

Chris Roberts, the chief executive at the IBA, told The Guardian he would welcome such a scenario. “We did what we did, we told the IOC what had happened,” he said. “We informed that we understood they were not eligible and they [the IOC] continued to allow them. If there is nothing to hide, have a public test. There is no requirement to tell lies. It is what it is. There is no legal challenge to us directly. And if they feel unjustly done by, let’s go down that route. It would be brilliant. No problem at all.”

Whatever one’s opinion on the feud between the IBA and the IOC, that testing remains the crux of their futures – should they wish to identify as fighters. 

Radcliff, who works in boxing as a ringside physician, believes it’s time for the IOC to readdress their rules regarding gender, which are currently in line with the World Health Organization, with chromosome testing at the forefront of that change. “They [IOC] support athletes who meet the eligibility criteria of their international foundation – they do not want to discriminate against athletes based on their gender identity or sex characteristics,” she said. “Why is the IOC and the World Health Organization making these kinds of statements?”

Her view on the matter was strengthened upon seeing that report published in French magazine, Le Correspondant, which alleges XY chromosomes were present in Khelif at birth. The findings of that report, which reference research carried out at two separate universities, are yet to be verified. “If these are true, and we can’t confirm that they are, then Khelif was a male at the time of birth,” Radcliff alleges.

Khelif grew up as one of six children in an impoverished family of shepherds in the Algerian village of Biban Mesbah and grew up to be an Olympic champion. That, however, does not give people the right to join the dots. Only Imane Khelif can now do that.