Olympic boxing champion Imane Khelif said she had won for her country's women as Algeria's Paris Games medallists received a hero's welcome at Algiers airport on Monday.
Welcome home CHAMPS..
— فُـ‘ـُۅآز Fouez (@0Fouez0) August 12, 2024
🔸 IMANE Khelif. 🥇 🥊
🔸 KAYLIA Nemour. 🥇 🤸♂️
🔸 DJAMEL Sedjati. 🥉 🏃 #Paris2024 #Algeria pic.twitter.com/QdbQvCWm36
Khelif, who was the centre of a gender controversy at the Olympics on her way to the women's 66kg title, teenage gymnastics gold medallist Kaylia Nemour and men's 800m bronze medallist Djamel Sedjati brandished their medals for the waiting fans.
The crowd cheered Khelif with chants of "Tahia Imane" (long live Imane).
Look at how Algerians turned out in Algiers to celebrate Olympic boxer Imane Khelif after she won gold at the Paris 2024 Olympics. pic.twitter.com/VfoZKQEFxG
— Mona Eltahawy (@monaeltahawy) August 12, 2024
"The answer lay in the results of each match," she said. "I wanted to show the strength of performance and the presence of women in general, and Algerian women in particular."
🇩🇿🥇 Imane Khelif getting a presidential reception upon her return to Algeria after winning the gold medal in boxing at the #Paris2024 #OlympicGames pic.twitter.com/hNVOKWERkr
— Algeria FC (@Algeria_FC) August 12, 2024
The International Olympic Committee took over the boxing competition in Paris after losing patience with the International Boxing Association.
The IBA, led by Umar Kremlev, a Kremlin-linked oligarch, retaliated during the Games by saying it had disqualified Khelif and Taiwan's Lin Yu-ting from its world championships last year because its tests showed "these are men".
The IBA had allowed both boxers to compete in Tokyo three years ago.
Khelif, 25, addressed what she called a "relentless campaign" on Monday.
She said she wanted "to thank the Algerian people who supported me in this ordeal and gave me strength".
"Algerian women are an example and a model for the whole world," the boxer said.
"Thanks to God, we have restored Algeria's honour and flown the Algerian flag in Paris, which is the most important thing."