Claressa Shields apologizes for referring to controversial Olympic boxer Imane Khelif as a “Transgender”

Two-time Olympic gold medalist Claressa Shields has pivoted her stance on controversial Olympic boxer Imane Khelif.

Khelif is at the center of one of the biggest controversies in Olympic history in Paris. After defeating Italy’s Angela Carini at the Olympics, it was revealed that Khelif failed a gender eligibility test at the 2023 World Championships, and tested positive for having XY (male) chromosomes.

Despite the failed test, Khelif was still permitted to compete at the Olympics and reportedly suffered from a genetic condition called Swyer Syndrome. It’s a rare condition in which a female’s sexual development is affected and some people can have XY chromosomes despite being born female.

Shields, one of the best female boxers on the planet, said in an interview with Fox News that Khelif shouldn’t compete against females due to Khelif being “transgender”. She made these remarks before Khelif’s reported genetic condition was shared with the public.

Claressa Shields backtracks on Imane Khelif controversy

In a recent interview with TMZ Sports, Shields backtracked on her original comments after new information surfaced.

“You can’t look at a woman and say ‘Oh, she doesn’t have a high level of testosterone,’ because it can come in all different forms,” Shields said. “Your muscles, your face, just inside of you and you look like a petite, beautiful woman, but you have a high level of testosterone…I feel bad now because I did an interview with Fox News earlier where I literally called these two women, transgenders, which that’s what I was told…

“I wish I would’ve did my research before, because now I couldn’t imagine being at the Olympics, winning these fights, and now I’m seeing all these articles and I’m trending because a two-time Olympic champ just called me a transgender. I just feel really bad about that, and I want to clear it up on my end that I have found out that these two women, were born women, and I don’t know what this testosterone stuff is about.”

Shields went on to say that she’s never had to undergo a testosterone or gender eligibility test during her boxing career.

Khelif’s Olympic success has been criticized by top UFC stars such as Sean Strickland and Israel Adesanya. As of this writing, it’s uncertain when Khelif’s next Olympic boxing fight will occur.

Shields returned to MMA earlier this year, earning a win over Kelsey DeSantis at PFL vs. Bellator. As for Khelif, the boxer has accumulated a 42-9 professional record.