Imane Khelif is a fighter through and through. After her Olympic gold, she now has a new world championship dream. And French DJ and record producer DJ Snake is right beside her to support the Algerian boxer. The 25-year-old initially came under social media scanner when she defeated Angela Carini of Italy during the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Speculation about her being a biological male quickly spread across the internet, fueled by misinformation from prominent figures like J.K. Rowling, Elon Musk, and Donald Trump. However, it was later confirmed that Khelif was indeed born female and fully eligible to compete. She went on to win a gold medal for her country in the Women’s 66kg division.

At the end of August, she returned to her home country, where she was celebrated as the champion. During this time, the 25-year-old received a brand-new Arrizo 8 automobile from Chinese car manufacturing giant Chery. After receiving the new car in recognition of her accomplishments, a swarm of reporters gathered to ask about her plans. She revealed, “I’m now aiming for a world championship. It’s my dream, and I’ll continue to train to get there.” It’s worth noting that the International Boxing Association (IBA) disqualified Khelif during the 2023 World Championships in New Delhi, citing her failure in an unspecified gender eligibility test.

Since then, the IBA has defended their test results. They insisted that Imane Khelif should not have been allowed to compete in the Olympics. However, on June 21, 2023, the International Olympic Committee banned the IBA because of governance issues, suspicions of corruption, and widespread complaints about incompetence.

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All this means is that Khelif’s participation in any future World Championships, which are overseen by the IBA, could be challenging. Despite this, after receiving encouragement from DJ Snake, Imane Khelif expressed that she remains motivated to move forward and achieve great things.

Imane Khelif expresses her gratitude to DJ Snake

The rising star in women’s boxing received a heartfelt surprise during a recent interview with Ratchetv when DJ Snake, the globally renowned music producer, sent her a message of support in French. “I’m proud of you, of your journey, of what you’re doing, of the person you are,” DJ Snake declared, adding that “this is just the beginning. Stay strong!”

Visibly moved, Imane Khelif responded, “It’s huge for me. DJ Snake is an icon, someone I’ve admired for a long time.” The unexpected encouragement has fueled her determination even further. “Knowing that someone like him believes in me and my journey is a real source of inspiration,” she shared, promising to “give it my all, not to disappoint.”

Imane’s gratitude was evident as she sent a message back to DJ Snake, “Thank you, my brother. I’m going to keep working hard to make everyone proud.” 

Having said that, Imane Khelif has a tough challenge ahead of her just to qualify for the World Championships. However, support from prominent figures like DJ Snake and others should keep her going and motivated. What do you think about Khelif’s journey?