Olympic boxer Imane Khelif’s uncle describes her tough upbringing

It was only through leaving her remote village to live with her uncle and her aunt that Imane was able to overcome social stigma and forge her career as a boxer.

The eldest of six sisters and one brother, she grew up in Ain Mesbah, a rural village where traditionally only boys would play outside, and girls would rarely leave their homes.

Imane’s sporting talent was discovered by a local boxing coach as she was playing football in the street with boys. The coach invited her to train at a sports centre, about 10km from her home village.

Imane’s father, Amar Khelif, agreed to let her daughter participate in the training. Imane’s mother sold scrap metal and couscous to raise the bus fare for the journey to and from the centre.

Rachid Jabeur told the BBC that it wasn’t long before rumours and gossip began to spread in Imane’s home village. Locals started to question the family’s decision to let her go alone: “Why [would] a girl her age travel without her family?”

This led Imane’s father, a shepherd and a blacksmith, to change his mind and to ask his daughter to stop training with the coach.

Imane was about to give up her sporting aspirations. But then Rachid and his wife contacted Imane’s father to say they would look after her, as they lived closer to the sports centre.

“We welcomed her into our home in the city [Tiaret] where we cared for her with special meals and for sports training,” Rachid said.

“We supported and encouraged her as part of our family.”

Like her mother, Imane also would sell scrap copper to cover her training costs but still faced harassment because it was unusual for a girl to take part in boxing, even in a city.

“I always told my sons to accompany her to and from training sessions to protect her,” Rachid said.

Imane’s boxing skills improved rapidly. Three years after moving to live with her uncle, she joined the Algerian national team and competed at the 2018 women’s World Championships, where she came 17th after being eliminated in the first round.