Controversy did not follow Imane Khelif home to Algeria.
The gold medal-winning boxer returned home from the Paris Olympics on Monday, and along with her fellow Alerian medalists, was greeted by Algiers’ Minister of Youth and Sports Abderrahmane Hammad.
They will also meet President Abdelmadjid Tebboune later this week, according to APS, the nation’s public press service.
Khelif, 25, found herself in the middle of Olympic controversy after winning her opening bout against Italy’s Angela Carini in 46 seconds.
Carini’s post-fight comments — she claimed she’d never been punched so hard and refused to shake Khelif’s hand — created a firestorm of questions surrounding Khelif’s sex and eligibility to be fighting in the women’s tournament.
The Italian later said she regretted her comments.
The Russian-led IBA had previously disqualified Khelif and Taiwan’s Lin Yu-Ting — who won gold in the women’s 57kg division — claiming they had failed eligibility tests, though the governing body has not been transparent about those tests.
The IOC, which has disassociated itself from the IBA, continually backed Khelif throughout the Olympic tournament, during which she went on to beat Hungary’s Anna Luca Hamori, Thailand’s Janjaem Suwannapheng and China’s Liu Yang en route to gold.
“I’m fully qualified to take part in this competition,” Khelif said after her victory on Friday. “I’m a woman like any other woman. I was born as a woman, I live as a woman, and I am qualified.”
Despite the controversy and scrutiny surrounding Khelif and her journey, she remained undaunted.
“For eight years, this has been my dream, and I’m now the Olympic champion and gold medalist,” Khelif said. “[The scrutiny] also gives my success a special taste because of those attacks.”
On Sunday, Khelif filed a lawsuit with Paris authorities, saying she was the victim of online abuse.
“We are in the Olympics to perform as athletes, and I hope that we will not see any similar attacks in future Olympics,” she said.
