‘I’m not trans, I’m a girl’: Olympic boxing champion Imane Khelif hits back at Donald Trump, open to gender test for LA 2028

Olympic boxing champion Imane Khelif has said she is prepared to undergo a sex test to compete at the 2028 Los Angeles Games, as she pushes back against claims by US President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly described her as a “male boxer.”

Khelif, 26, won gold at the Paris 2024 Olympics, but her participation and victory sparked a global gender-eligibility controversy after claims surfaced that she had allegedly failed a sex eligibility test the previous year. The issue intensified in 2025 when World Boxing announced mandatory sex screening for fighters, a statement that singled out Khelif by name before the governing body later issued an apology.

Since the introduction of mandatory testing, Khelif has not competed, instead taking her case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in an attempt to compete without being tested. A hearing date has yet to be announced.

While maintaining that she “will not surrender” in her legal challenge, Khelif told CNN she would still comply with testing requirements if it meant returning to the Olympic ring.

“Of course, I would accept doing anything I'm required to do to participate in competitions,” Khelif said.

“They should protect women, but they need to pay attention that while protecting women, they shouldn't hurt other women.”

Trump has repeatedly targeted Khelif while promoting his executive order titled “Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports.” The US president has referred to her as a “male boxer” who had “transitioned” and “stole the women’s gold medal” at the Paris Games, claims that are incorrect. Khelif was born female but is believed to possess the SRY gene, which is associated with male sex chromosomes.

Trump doubled down on the claim during a speech to Republican lawmakers in January.

‘Trump cannot distort the truth’

Speaking to French outlet L’Equipe, Khelif addressed Trump’s remarks directly, saying she never sought the political spotlight that followed her Olympic success.

“I didn't ask for any of this,” she said, adding that the politics surrounding her situation are “beyond” her.

“I respect everyone, and I respect Trump because he's the president of the United States,” she told L’Equipe. “Trump cannot distort the truth. I'm not trans, I'm a girl.

“I was raised as a girl, I grew up as a girl, people in my village have always known me as a girl.”

While a ban on transgender women competitors is widely expected to be in place for the 2028 Olympics, it remains unclear whether athletes with differences of sexual development (DSD) will face additional barriers following the boxing controversy at Paris 2024.

Despite the uncertainty, Khelif says her focus remains firmly on Los Angeles, even joking that she hopes Trump himself will present her medal.

“I respect him if he respects the truth,” she said. “If I could say something to him? Mr. President, I'm a girl, a young Arab Muslim woman, a boxer. And I'm working so you can come and give me a medal on the podium in Los Angeles.”