French authorities to investigate Algerian boxer Khelif’s cyberbullying charges against Elon Musk, J.K. Rowling

The French police’s hate crimes unit will investigate Algerian boxer Imane Khelif’s charges of cyberbullying on the grounds of gender.

The Paris prosecutor instructed them to do so on Wednesday after Khelif filed a complaint Monday with France’s national center for combating online hate.

In an interview with Variety on Tuesday, Khelif’s attorney Nabil Boudi revealed that the criminal complaint names J.K. Rowling and Elon Musk, as they referred online to Khelif as a man in questioning her eligibility to participate in the Olympics. Boudi described the online hate center as part of Paris’ correctional court.

Boudi added that the lawsuit names others as well, suggesting that Donald Trump could also be part of the investigation. “Trump tweeted, so whether or not he is named in our lawsuit, he will inevitably be looked into as part of the prosecution,” the lawyer said.

Last Friday, Khelif won the Olympic gold medal in the women’s welterweight boxing competition as she defeated previous world champion Yang Liu of China.

Despite being born female, the Algerian athlete faced a storm of criticism and accusations over her gender after she failed an unspecified gender eligibility test in March 2023.

Backlash against Khelif started to spread on Aug. 1, after the Italian boxer Angela Carini abandoned her match against Khelif after 46 seconds, saying she “never felt a punch like this.”

Italian politicians immediately expressed their support for Carini and questioned the International Olympic Committee (IOC)’s decision to allow the Algerian athlete to compete among women.

“I think that athletes who have male genetic characteristics should not participate in women’s competitions. Not because we want to discriminate against anyone, but to protect the rights of female athletes to compete on equal terms,” Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni told reporters during her visit to the Paris Olympics.

“A truly un-Olympic scene: Shame on those bureaucrats who allowed a match that was evidently not on equal terms,” Italian Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini wrote on X.

The IOC, however, defended its decision to let Khelif compete at the Olympics, telling the media on Aug. 2 after the Carini match that Khelif “is not a transgender case.”

“There has been some confusion that somehow, this is a man fighting a woman. This is just not the case scientifically. On that, there is consensus: Scientifically, this is not a man fighting a woman,” said IOC spokesperson Mark Adams.

Algeria’s Imane Khelif’s attorney revealed that the criminal complaint names J.K. Rowling and Elon Musk, as they referred online to Khelif as a man in questioning her eligibility to participate in the Olympics. | Mohd Rasfan/AFP via Getty Images

“I’m a woman like any other woman,” Khelif said on Friday after winning her first Olympic gold medal.

“I was born a woman, I lived [as] a woman, I competed as a woman, there’s no doubt about that. There are enemies of success, that is what I call them …. And that also gives my success a special taste, because of these attacks.”

Victor Goury-Laffont contributed reporting.