Tennis legend Martina Navratilova It only needed one shorthand in response to Olympic boxing gold medalist Iman Khalif receiving votes for the Associated Press's Female Athlete of the Year award.
Khalif was in a firestorm throughout the Olympics after learning that the Algerian fighter had failed a gender test in the lead-up to the Olympics. Paris games. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) confirmed that Khalif met all competition requirements and ultimately won the gold medal.
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Iman Khalif competes with Ana Luca Hamori during the Paris Olympics in Villepinte, France, in August 2019. 3, 2024. (Mehmet Murat Önel/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Khalif came in third place in the vote and received four votes. Caitlin Clark won the award and Simone Biles came in second place.
Navratilova, who has been a vocal advocate for protecting women's sports, responded in a post on X.
“Wtf???” I wrote, which means “what is the actual f—.”
Khalifa qualified for the Paris Olympics, but Khalifa's gender came into question after he was disqualified from the 2023 tournament before the gold medal match due to gender eligibility issues.
International Boxing Federation President Omar Kremlev said the boxer has “XY chromosomes” associated with biological males.
Algerian Iman Khalif looks at Italian Angela Carini after a boxing match at the Summer Olympics, August 1, 2024, in Paris. (AP Photo/John Loescher, File)
Boxer Angela Carini lost her match against Khalif in Paris, saying, “One punch hurts me a lot.”
Khalif won gold in Paris and was not the only women's gold medalist to be disqualified for failing gender eligibility tests. Taiwanese Lin Yu-ting also won the gold medal in another women's weight category in Paris, sparking similar outrage.
The International Olympic Committee has defended the inclusion of Khalif and Yu Ting in the women's events.
Tennis legend Martina Navratilova presents awards at the French Open at Roland Garros on June 8, 2024 in Paris. (Tim Clayton/Corbis via Getty Images)
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Khalif was the most Googled athlete of the year, largely due to controversy.
Fox News' Ryan Morek contributed to this report.
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