Algerian boxer and Olympic Gold medallist Imane Khelif has found herself in the storm regarding her gender once again with a leaked medical report claiming her to be a man. Khelif won the Olympic Gold in the women's 66kg category in Paris, however, her gender became a rather divisive issue when Ireland's Anegla Carini pulled out of the bout 46 seconds in against the Algerian pugilist.
Assigned as a female at birth and on her passport, fulfilling IOA's eligibility criteria, Khelif had failed a gender eligibility test last year and was disqualified from the World Championships 2023. Now, a leaked medical report obtained by the French journalist Djaffar Ait Aoudia stated that Khelif was impacted by 5-alpha reductase deficiency, a disorder found in genetic males with respect to sexual development.
Drafted in June 2023 via a collaboration between the Kremlin-Bicêtre Hospital in Paris, France, and the Mohamed Lamine Debaghine Hospital in Algiers, Algeria, the report through an MRI result claimed that Khelif had no uterus, but instead had internal testicles and a “micropenis" resembling an enlarged clitoris.
A chromosomal test confirmed Khelif carrying an XY karyotype, referring to a genetic male with the report recommending a “surgical correction and hormone therapy" along with psychological support. As per Aoudia, the doctors suggested that Khelif's parents may have been blood relatives following the test.
5-alpha reductase is a condition that affects sexual development and puberty in people, who are born genetically male, one of the most common reasons for ambiguous genitalia in children. The deficiency may cause onset masculinization with enhanced muscle and hair growth and an absence of breast tissue even if the person is assigned as a female at birth, which is the main reason for ambiguity.
Carini had called out an apparent unfair advantage for Khelif when she pulled out of the bout and since the Algerian went all the way and won the Gold, the whole issue may open up yet again.
