Khelif advanced through the Olympic Games amid international scrutiny and uninformed speculation about her sex. Despite being born and raised as a woman, she found herself at the center of Western debates about gender, sex and sports after failing unspecified eligibility tests for women’s competition from the IBA in 2023.

Imane Khelif, who won Paris Olympics boxing gold amid a gender-eligibility row, has accused the International Boxing Association of making "false and offensive" accusations after it launched legal action against the IOC for allowing her to compete.

Imane Khelif has pledged to continue fighting in the women’s category despite a decision by the International Boxing Association to file criminal complaints over the Algerian’s participation in last summer’s Paris Olympics.