Imane Khelif files cyberbullying lawsuit against X, naming Elon Musk and JK Rowling
The Algerian Olympic boxing champion has filed a lawsuit against social media platform X, naming Elon Musk, JK Rowling and others
Photo courtesy: Imane Khelif Instagram
Algerian boxer Imane Khelif has filed a cyberbullying lawsuit against social media platform X. She filed the legal action in France, following a global debate about her gender during her Olympic run, in which she earned a gold medal in 66kg women’s boxing.
The criminal complaint cites alleged “acts of aggravated cyber harassment,” and claims that she was subjected to “misogynistic, racist and sexist” cyberbullying. While the lawsuit names famous figures including JK Rowling and Elon Musk, the legal action was filed against unknown persons, Khelif’s lawyer Nabil Boudi told Variety. This “ensures that the prosecution has all the latitude to be able to investigate against all people,” including people writing under a fake name.
She faced online bullying following her quarter-final match against Italian boxer Angela Carini, who abandoned the match after just 46 seconds, stating that she “never felt a punch like this.” This was followed by rampant online speculation about Khelif’s gender.
The accusations go back to the 2023 Women’s World Boxing Championship, where she was disqualified from competing after failing a gender eligibility test by the International Boxing Association (IBA). The association alleged that Khelif and fellow boxer Lin Yu Ting from Taiwan were born male, have XY chromosomes, or have high levels of testosterone (akin to men), therefore ruling both of them ineligible to compete.
Yet IBA representatives were unclear about the actual scope of the tests and have made differing statements over time. “The athletes did not undergo a testosterone examination but were subject to a separate and recognized test, whereby the specifics remain confidential. This test conclusively indicated that both athletes did not meet the required eligibility criteria and were found to have competitive advantages over other female competitors,” the IBA highlighted in a recent statement. The International Olympics Committee (IOC) suspended the IBA as boxing’s governing body because of corruption, financial transparency and governance.
The IOC defines gender based on passports, and Khelif’s Algerian passport states that she is a female – and the nation does not recognize transgender individuals. IOC spokesperson Mark Adams stated, “The Algerian boxer was born female, was registered female, lived her life as a female, boxed as a female, and has a female passport.”
Rowling inaccurately accused Khelif of being a male and critiqued the Olympics in a statement. “The smirk of a male who knows he’s protected by a misogynist sporting establishment enjoying the distress of a woman he’s just punched in the head, and whose life’s ambition he’s just shattered,” she wrote on X. Musk, who owns the platform X, shared a post from US swimmer Riley Gaines that asserted “men don’t belong in women’s sports”, adding: “Absolutely.”
Although public figures were named in Imane Khelif’s lawsuit, Boudi told Variety that “what we’re asking is that the prosecution investigates not only these people but whoever it feels necessary”.
