J.K. Rowling has condemned the Olympics for allowing Algeria’s Imane Khelif, a biological male to compete in the women’s boxing competition at the Paris 2024 games. Khelif was disqualified from last year’s Women’s World Championships after she failed a gender eligibility test due to elevated levels of testosterone in her system.
At the Paris Olympics, Khelif’s boxing match against Italy’s Angela Carini ended in 46 seconds after Carini decided to bow out of the fight after taking some punches from Khelif.
Carini fought back tears as she ended the match and later told the BBC: “It could have been the match of a lifetime, but I had to preserve my life as well in that moment.”
The Harry Potter author shared a picture on X(twitter), of Carini in tears and Khelif trying to comfort her after the match was cut short, and wrote: “Could any picture sum up our new men’s rights movement better?” Rowling wrote on X while sharing. “The smirk of a male who’s 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.”
Elon Musk, Founder of SpaceX and Chairman of Tesla also slammed the Olympics for allowing Khelif a biological male to compete in the women boxing category.
Musk shared a post from swimmer Riley Gaines that claimed “men don’t belong in women’s sports.” The X owner co-signed the message by writing: “Absolutely.”
Carini told press that she would not criticize Khelif’s placement in the women’s competition, saying: “I wish her to carry on until the end and that she can be happy. I am someone who doesn’t judge anyone. I am not here to give judgements.”
