Head of Algerian Olympic committee blames “Zionist” conspiracy for gender row

The head of the Algerian Olympic committee has claimed that a boxer at the centre of a gender row is the victim of a “Zionist” conspiracy.

Speaking before the women’s 66kg division quarter-final against Hungarian Luca-Anna Hamori – which guaranteed that Algerian boxer Imane Khelif would win at least a bronze medal – Yassine Arab, the director of Algeria’s Olympic and Sports Committees, told the Sydney Morning Herald that Khelif had been attacked by “Zionists”.

“The Zionist lobby” wanted to “break the mind” of Imane, he declared. “They don’t want a Muslim girl or Arabic girl [to go] higher in the level of the rank of female boxing,” he said.

The row, over Ms Khelif’s eligibility to fight as a woman, followed claims she was a man and a “bullying cheat” after her Italian opponent withdrew from their bout after only 46 seconds.

Angela Carini said that she had pulled out of the bout to “save my life” after claiming that the Algerian boxer hit her so hard she could not breathe.

Ms Khelif was previously disqualified from the 2023 Women’s World Boxing Championships – organised by the Russian-led International Boxing Association (IBA) – after the boxer failed gender eligibility tests. The results of the IBA tests – which exclude persons with XY chromosomes from competing against other women – have not been disclosed, but the body has said Ms Khelif had a “competitive advantage”.

It has never been proven that Ms Khelif has XY chromosomes and she has never identified as transgender or intersex.

Speaking to Qatari sports network, BeIN Sports, she declared that the IBA was being “unfair” with her and that she wanted “to tell the entire world” that she was female, and would “remain a female.” She said she was dedicating her medal to “all the Arabs” adding: “Long live Algeria.”

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