The press conference was held in a bid to ridicule Algerian Olympic boxer Imane Khelif, but things didn’t go to plan
A press conference by the boxing organization that started the ‘gender row’ involving Algeria’s Imane Khelif was gatecrashed by the boxer’s ‘best friend’.
The IBA (International Boxing Association) hosted the conference on Monday in an attempt to further rubbish boxers Khelif and Lin Yu-ting, of Taiwan, who they disqualified from competing at its world championships last year.
Algerian boxer Imane Khelif has faced worldwide scrutiny. (MAURO PIMENTEL/AFP via Getty Images)
However, the media invite didn’t exactly go to plan for the organization – which was stripped of its Olympic credentials five years ago.
IBA president Umar Kremlev, a friend of Vladimir Putin, has claimed that the unspecified gender text ‘proved’ Kheli and Yu-ting had XY chromosomes – which men have.
This is despite Omar Khelif, father of Algeria’s aspiring gold medalist, showing his daughter’s birth certificate on TV to prove she was born a girl – during an interview with French station BFMTV.
The two-hour press conference has been labelled as ‘shambolic’ even saw the BBC, a UK broadcaster, vacate the room in protest.
A little while into the meeting, members of Algeria’s Olympic team came and protested themselves, including boxer Roumaysa Boualam – who has been described by Sky Sports reporter Geraint Hughes as Khelif’s ‘best friend’.
Algerian boxer Roumaysa Boualam – who also competed in these Olympic Games – waved her country’s flag and explained to reporters why she came in support of Imane Khelif. Speaking about Khelif she told me “Every person portrayed like that would feel angry and frustrated” pic.twitter.com/wnSjQHhYqg
— Tyrone Francis (@TJFrancisLive) August 5, 2024
Speaking at the meeting, she said: “Every person portrayed like that would feel angry and frustrated.
“Imane is really strong. She’s my friend.
“I want to support my country, and the truth, and my friend.”
Boualam, who was eliminated from the women’s boxing 50kg category, explained she has spoken to Khelif about the issue, but didn’t touch on what was said.
Speaking of the meeting, Hughes wrote: “Towards the end of the press conference it became evident that two members of the Algerian Olympic delegation, two women, had made it into the room.
“They began demonstrating. They removed some outer garments of their clothing, a jacket, and revealed they were wearing Algerian tops. They were waving a flag.
Khelif will fight Yang Liu, of China, on Friday (August 9). (MOHD RASFAN/AFP via Getty Images)
“She [Boualam] spoke passionately about Khelif being a girl at birth, registered as a girl, growing up as a girl and growing up as a woman, how she is absolutely entitled to be boxing in Paris and that she is a hero and a champion.”
Hughes, who labelled the meeting as ‘farcical’, explained that the IBA told the media it was going to explain why Khelif and Yu-ting were banned.
He wrote: “The IBA said today it was going to offer a detailed explanation of why Imane Khelif and Lin Yu-ting had been banned from boxing at the IBA World Championships in Delhi in 2023. Nobody in that room got anything of the sort.”
Khelif will compete against Yang Liu, of China, for gold medal on Friday (August 9), with silver already guaranteed.
