ALGIERS — Born in a poor village some 300 kilometres from Algiers, boxer Imane Khelif had to overcome obstacles in a conservative country where women are considered unfit for the sport.
With braided hair and a powerful 1.79 metre physique, the 25-year-old is the object of a Paris Olympic Games gender controversy.
With smiles and a soft voice, Imane told her story on television channel Canal Algerie one month before the start of the games.
“Our village was around 10 kilometres from the centre [of Tiaret, 280 kilometres southwest of Algiers]. I moved from the village to the city. From the city to the capital. From the capital to abroad,” she said.
From a family of limited means, she spoke of the difficulty of her life in “a village of conservative people” in Tiaret’s semi-desert surroundings.
“I came from a conservative family. Boxing is not a widely-practised sport by women, especially in Algeria. It was difficult.”
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