GOLD MEDAL BOXER IMANE KHELIF HAILED UPON RETURN TO ALGERIA

AP

 TIARET, Algeria -- With an outpouring of fans greeting her as she arrived in her hometown on Friday, Olympic gold medalist Imane Khelif extolled Algeria for backing its athletes and said she hoped to again make her country proud in the future.

The football-obsessed North African country has given Khelif the celebrity treatment since she returned to Algiers earlier this week. Nowhere has this been truer than Tiaret, the rural region in central Algeria where she grew up and learned to box.

She and track star Djamel Sedjati were honored by local leaders and then paraded through the streets atop a city bus as hundreds of residents raised their hands and snapped photos.

"All Algerian men and women have the right to be happy and celebrate," she told reporters Friday at a local government office. "This proves that the government and the people are all behind sports."

Algerians vigorously defended Khelif as she advanced through the Olympic Games amid international scrutiny and uninformed speculation about her sex.

Despite being born and raised as a woman, she found herself in the crosshairs of Western debates about gender, sex and sports after failing unspecified and untransparent eligibility tests for women's competition from the now-banned International Boxing Association in 2023.

As observers including billionaire Elon Musk, author J.K. Rowling and former U.S. President Donald Trump referred to her as a man in online posts, Algerians saw the controversy as an attack on their nation.

On Friday, Tiaret residents acknowledged the hardships that Khelif faced throughout the Olympics and said they hoped her success was just the beginning.

"We hope authorities will support her in moments of victory like this as well as throughout the whole year. She has suffered enormously and started from scratch," Mohamed Hamou said, sitting next to Khelif in Tiaret on Friday afternoon.

Later at the parade, Nadjia Fehma, another Tiaret resident, reveled in her victory and said she was an inspiration.

"She's made us really proud, especially given her career path and the way she's ended up succeeding," Fehma said.

Khelif's hometown welcome came days after she filed a criminal complaint for cyber-harassment in France, with her lawyer alleging a "misogynist, racist and sexist campaign" throughout the Olympics.

On Wednesday, Khelif acknowledged the difficulties and fear she felt on El Bilad, a private television channel in Algeria. She said nobody had the right to question her sex and that she wasn't someone who enjoyed mixing politics and sports.

"Why was there such an outcry all over the world?" she asked. "I was afraid, but thank God, I was able to overcome it."

- Associated Press

JAKE PAUL, J.K. ROWLING', ELON MUSK REACT TO 2024 PARIS OLYMPICS BOXING GENDER CONTROVERSY

Algeria's Imane Khelif leaves after her women's 66kg preliminaries round of 16 boxing match against Italy's Angela Carini during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at the North Paris Arena, in Villepinte on August 1, 2024. (Photo by MOHD RASFAN / AFP) (Photo by MOHD RASFAN/AFP via Getty Images) ORIG FILE ID: 2164126386Less

 The 2024 Paris Olympics finds itself embroiled in controversy over its decision to include a couple of boxers in women's boxing tournaments who have had their gender eligibility questioned.

And the controversy has reached a boiling point after a boxer withdrew 46 seconds into a bout against one of the boxers in question during a match Thursday in France.

The controversy has taken over social media with many celebrities sounding off on the International Olympic Committee's decision to allow the boxers in the tournament, with Jake Paul, J.K. Rowling and Elon Musk joining a chorus for change.

Before we look at their reaction to the controversy, here's the backstory.

Algeria's Imane Khelif wins bout vs Italy's Angela Carini

Khelif and Lin Yu-Ting of Taiwan, who is also competing in the 2024 Paris Olympics, both won medals at the 2023 world championships before tournament officials announced that the boxers had failed gender eligibility tests. The organizers stripped the boxers of their medals.

But this week, the IOC said both boxers met the criteria to compete in France.

IOC spokesperson Mark Adams explained to reporters: "They've been competing in boxing for a very long time. They've achieved all the eligibility requirements in terms of sex and age. We're following the rules in place in Tokyo."

He added: “I would just say that everyone competing in the women’s category is complying with the competition eligibility rules. They are women in their passports and it is stated that is the case.”

Khelif won the bout vs. Carini after landing a single punch Thursday on Carini's nose.

Jake Paul slams Olympics for allowing Imane Khelif to compete: 'This is wrong'

Pro boxer and social media influencer Jake Paul posted the following message on X in response to a video showing the short boxing match between Carini and Khelif.

"This is sickening," he wrote. "This is a travesty. Doesn’t matter what you believe. This is wrong and dangerous."

J.K. Rowling sounds off on Imane Khelif vs Angel Carini bout: 'This isn't sport'

Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling was particularly vocal on X, writing, among other things: "Watch this (whole thread), then explain why you’re OK with a man beating a woman in public for your entertainment. This isn’t sport. From the bullying cheat in red all the way up to the organisers who allowed this to happen, this is men revelling in their power over women."

Elon Musk joins the chorus crying for change

X owner Elon Musk replied to a post from Riley Gaines that said "Men don't belong in women's sports" with a  one-word answer.

"Absolutely," he wrote.

The controversy is bound to continue, especially if Khelif continues to advance at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

USA TODAY Sports' Josh Peter contributed to this story.

- Jeremy Cluff, Arizona Republic