Harry Potter author JK Rowling has deleted at least 27 tweets after Imane Khelif, the Algerian boxer who won gold in the women’s welterweight category at the Paris Olympics, filed a lawsuit against her, Elon Musk, and Donald Trump for online harassment.
Social media users noticed Rowling’s effort to reduce online presence during increased scrutiny. Despite this, some of Rowling’s retweets are still visible, including one about a similar controversy involving another female athlete, Taiwan’s Lin Yu-ting.
Read This: Imane Khelif takes Elon Musk and JK Rowling to court
Imane has spoken about the emotional stress caused by the criticism but remains firm in defending her right to compete. While Rowling’s silence has raised eyebrows, Khelif’s resilience stands out in adversity.
Background:
This issue started when the Algerian boxer filed a cyberbullying case against Elon Musk, JK Rowling, and Donald Trump, claiming she faced “aggravated cyber-harassment,” which her lawyer, Nabil Boudi, described as a “misogynist, racist, and sexist campaign.”
Her lawyer stated that JK Rowling and Elon Musk participated in this campaign. The issue began when American swimmer Riley Gaines posted a picture of Khelif with the caption, “Men don’t belong in women’s sports.” Musk then shared the post, agreeing with it.
Rowling also criticized Khelif’s involvement, stating on X, “Could any picture sum up our new men’s rights movement better? The smirk of a male who knows he’s protected by a misogynist sporting establishment, enjoying the distress of a woman he’s just punched in the head and whose life’s ambition he’s just shattered.”
Khelif faced racist attacks after Italy’s Angela Carini withdrew from her Round of 16 fight against Khelif just 46 seconds into the match, saying she had never been struck this hard.
President Thomas Bach of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) supported Khelif, saying, “Women should be allowed to compete in women’s events.”
Khelif made history as the first Algerian woman to win an Olympic gold medal in boxing. She won the final match against China’s Yang Liu with a score of 5-0 and also secured impressive victories over Thailand’s Janjaem Suwannapheng and Hungary’s Luca Anna Hamori.
