Boxing bosses respond to claims Imane Khelif has lost Olympic gold medal after gender row

The World Boxing Organisation have hit back at reports claiming they have stripped Imane Khelif of the Olympic gold medal she won in Paris this summer following speculation online

The World Boxing Organisation (WBO) have hit back at reports saying they have stripped Imane Khelif of her Olympic gold medal, branding them as "obviously false".

Khelif, 25, won gold in the Women's welterweight competition at the Paris Olympics this summer. Her triumph came one year after she had been disqualified from the World Championships for allegedly failing a gender test.

Her run to the final in Paris - and subsequent victory over China's Yang Liu - was blighted by the gender row, with Khelif then taking legal action over the online harassment in the aftermath of the games.

Claims had begun to surface online that Khelif had been stripped of her medal and 'banned for life' by the WBO over the weekend. But with Khelif being an amateur boxer, the WBO would have no jurisdiction to do so - and they scotched said reports on Saturday evening.

“The World Boxing Organisation has informed that it had not tested, nor has it banned female boxer Imane Khelif, who won a gold medal during the boxing tournament of the 2024 Olympics in Paris, France,” a statement said.

“The report claiming that the WBO had banned Khelif are obviously false. We have had no communication with Khelif. We congratulate her and wish her luck in all her future endeavours.”

WBO legal counsel Gustavo Olivieri, Esq. added: “Any report stating otherwise is obviously fake and ill intentioned.”

Khelif, who was born as a woman, hit back at some of the comments directed at her throughout the games and following her victory. She took aim at X owner Elon Musk last month after naming him and several other celebrities, including former United States President Donald Trump, in her lawsuit.

“Elon Musk was one of the first to attack me during this hate campaign,” Khelif told Clique. “He posted this video and it was retweeted. So, he was one of the first to have spread this buzz, this campaign against me.

“I would say... you hate me but you don't even know me. I don't even know why you led this attack. You have been cruel to me, cruel to my family, to my mother. At that time, my mother was going to hospital every day.

“So I don't understand the behavior of people today. God is my guide, I am a practicing Muslim woman. I am a Muslim Arabic woman and I got through this moment. 'I hope I will be even stronger in the future and come back even more motivated.”