Triumphant reception

Popular heroine Khelif: pictures like Schranz once did

Imane Kehlif was virtually celebrated as a national hero in Tiaret.

(Bild: AP)

The images are somewhat reminiscent of Karl Schranz's triumphant reception at Heldenplatz in Vienna in 1972. Imane Khelif, the "male boxer", was also celebrated like a national hero in her home country at the weekend after an Olympic upset, albeit explicitly not (!) an exclusion.

The streets were packed with enthusiastic fans, cheering rallies, an open-top bus with the superstar on it, proudly holding the gold medal up to the crowd and then celebrating - the images of the reception for Imane Khelif have blockbuster potential. Khelif herself wrote that she had reached the "pinnacle of pride and honor". The Algerian Olympic boxing champion was received in grand style on Friday in her home town of Tiaret, the capital of the province of the same name in Algeria. Tens of thousands of fans celebrated the 24-year-old, who became famous as the "male boxer" in Paris, like a national heroine. And she clearly enjoyed bathing in the crowd.

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Fotos

"Overwhelming love"
"Thank you, Tiaret, thank you," says Khelif via Instagram. She had experienced an "overwhelming feeling of love". The support of her compatriots will "always remain in my heart".

Two days earlier, Khelif had also been received by Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune.

Khelif with President Tebboune

(Bild: AFP/APA/ALGERIAN PRESIDENCY FACEBOOK PAGE)

A lot of honor for the gold medal winner, after she had previously had to take a lot of - pictorial, media - beatings. At last year's World Championships, she had been banned from the women's events due to her Y chromosome, but was eligible to compete at the Olympics in Paris. And made the most of her (natural?) strength advantage. Gold went to her relatively unchallenged. This led to many debates. Even if it turned out in the course of the games that Khelif - contrary to what was originally reported - was born a woman and has always lived as such. Nevertheless, the Y chromosome cannot be explained away. Which is why many observers and experts have called for a separate category for these people, who cannot be assigned to either men's or women's boxing.

Like Karl Schranz
So be it (for now) - an upset at the Olympics and then being celebrated at home as a national hero and received in grand style? This activates the synapses charged with red-white-red sporting history. Skiing idol Karl Schranz was also greeted by tens of thousands in his home country over 50 years ago. Vienna's Heldenplatz literally went wild on February 8, 1972, when Schranz returned from Sapporo.

Historic scene: Karl Schranz on the balcony of the Chancellery in 1972

(Bild: APA/Fritz Kern/Önb Bildarchiv/Orf Ar)

"If, then all of them" 
Unlike Khelif, however, he was not even allowed to compete. The IOC saw Schranz's interpretation of his sport as a violation of the amateur rule. A simple newspaper photo was enough to come to this conclusion. Schranz had worn a shirt with the logo of a coffee brand at an amateur soccer match. Too much commerce, too much profiteering for the IOC boss at the time, Avery Brundage, who had been targeting the Alpine athletes for some time. Schranz had to serve as a pawn - because he was already the most prominent two-time World Cup winner at the time. "If it was, then everyone should have been excluded," Schranz said later. Nevertheless, his case contributed to the fact that athletes were later officially allowed to earn money.

What impact will the Khelif case have on the future of (women's) sport?