WWE star slams people attacking boxer Imane Khelif amid gender controversy
Wrestler Sami Zayn has called out the relentless online bullying faced by the Algerian boxer
Wrestler Sami Zayn has condemned the relentless online abuse and attacks directed against Algerian boxer Imane Khelif.
Khelif was thrust into the centre of an online row after a boxing match against Italy's Angela Carini, which lasted 46 seconds.
Misinformation was spread online about Khelif's gender after she was blocked from a previous competition by the now discredited Internetional Boxing Association (IBA).
The IBA carried out an unspecified 'gender eligibility test', which saw Khelif and Lin Yu-Ting from Taiwan barred from competing.
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Since then, the IBA has been disavowed by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) amid concerns around corruption.
These include around the body's president Umar Kremlev, who has ties to Vladimir Putin, as well as that the body's main sponsor is Russian state-owned gas company Gazprom.
Sami Zayn has now thrown his weight behind Khelif, urging her to go for gold and condemning the attacks as 'idiotic' and 'bigoted'.
He tweeted: "Big ups to the Muslim sister Imane Khelif who advanced in the Olympics today to box for the gold medal after facing a swarm of the most idiotic, bigoted comments I've ever seen an Olympic athlete face.
"Inshallah she wins the big one & the b****asses online get the help they need."
'Inshallah' means 'god-willing' or 'hopefully' in Arabic.
Khelif is now guaranteed a medal, and will face off against China's Liu Yang in the gold medal bout in a bid to become Algeria's first female gold medallist in boxing.
Speaking ahead of the fight, she said: "I am focused. I am here for a good performance and my dream. I will give everything I have for the final.
"I am very happy. I am very happy for all the support here in Paris. I want to thank all the people of Algeria who came here."
Khelif has been supported by the IOC, who released a statement saying that 'every person has the right to compete without discrimination'.
The 25-year-old boxer has also spoken out herself against the bullying she has faced online.
She told SNTV: "I send a message to all the people of the world to uphold the Olympic principles and the Olympic Charter, to refrain from bullying all athletes, because this has effects, massive effects.
"It can destroy people, it can kill people's thoughts, spirit and mind. It can divide people. And because of that, I ask them to refrain from bullying."
She added: "I am in contact with my family two days a week. I hope that they weren't affected deeply.
"They are worried about me. God willing, this crisis will culminate in a gold medal, and that would be the best response."
Topics: Imane Khelif, News, Olympics, World News, Sport, Twitter
Kit Roberts