Imane Khelif names Elon Musk, JK Rowling in cyberbullying lawsuit; here’s everything you need to know

“JK Rowling and Elon Musk are named in the lawsuit, among others,” Nabil Boudi, the Paris-based attorney of Khelif, told Variety. He also said that former US President Donald Trump would 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,” Boudi said.

What did Elon Musk and JK Rowling post on X?

Musk had re-posted an X post that read, “Men don’t belong in women’s sports.”

Rowling, infamous for her transphobic remarks, posted a photo of Khelif and Angela Carini, the Italian boxer who left the ring 46 seconds into the fight claiming she has never been hit so hard, saying, ““Could any picture sum up our new men’s rights movement better? The smirk of a male who’s [sic] 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.”

Rowling also shared a video of Kirsty Burrows, head of the Safe Sport Unit, speaking about offering Carini the most comprehensive package of mental health and safeguarding initiatives than any other Olympic or sporting event in history.

“A young female boxer has just had everything she’s worked and trained for snatched away because you allowed a male to get in the ring with her. You’re a disgrace, your ‘safeguarding’ is a joke and #Paris24 will be forever tarnished by the brutal injustice done to Carini,” the author reacted to the video.

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A young female boxer has just had everything she’s worked and trained for snatched away because you allowed a male to get in the ring with her. You’re a disgrace, your ‘safeguarding’ is a joke and #Paris24 will be forever tarnished by the brutal injustice done to Carini. https://t.co/JMKzVljpyr

— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) August 1, 2024

Who is Imane Khelif?

Khelif, 25, is a boxer from Algeria’s Tiaret. She grew up in a rural village and got into boxing despite her father’s disapproval. Khelif is now a UNICEF ambassador. The controversy around her gender first ignited during the 2023 Women’s World Boxing Championship, over which she was disqualified just before the gold medal match.

The controversy escalated during the Paris Olympics, following which Khelif’s father broke his silence for the first time and spoke about his daughter and her gender identity-related questions. In an interview with Sky News, Omar Khelif said, “My child is a girl. She was raised as a girl. She’s a strong girl. I raised her to be hard-working and brave. She has a strong will to work and to train,” he said.