Imane Khelif has filed an official complaint after being the subject of an gender eligibility row at the Olympics.
On Friday Khelif claimed the gold medal in the women’s 66kg competition after beating China’s Yang Liu via unanimous decision in Paris.
She became only the second Algerian to win a gold medal at the Games.
Her involvement in the event has been one of the biggest talking points of the Olympics given she was banned from the World Championships in India by the IBA after failing unspecified gender tests and president Umar Kremlev claiming she had XY chromosomes.
Born and identifying as a female, Khelif was cleared for this showpiece by a new governing body and received plenty of backlash throughout her participation – starting with the 46 second win over Angela Carini of Italy.
The International Olympic Committee have had to be active in responding to the storm created, as have the Algerian federation and Khelif’s father, Omar.
She broke her silence in a recent interview and called for an end to the “bullying”.
Now, her lawyer Nabil Boudi says Khelif will be taking action against “Paris Prosecutors” for “aggravated online harassment”.
“The boxer Imane Khelif has decided to begin a new fight, a fight for justice, dignity and honour,” Boudi said, as per the Gulf Times.
“The investigation will determine who was behind this misogynist, racist and sexist campaign, but will also have to concern itself with those who fed the online lynching.
“The ‘iniquitous harassment’ the boxing champion had been subjected to would remain ‘the biggest stain on these Olympic Games’.”
According to reports, a boxer typically earns £78,515 in prize money for winning gold at the Olympics.
Half goes to the athlete, with the other half split between the National Federation and the coach who played a key part in the triumph.
To complicate proceedings for Khelif, the International Boxing Association (IBA) are responsible for dishing out the prize money.
