On Friday, she shared an article by evolutionary biologist Colin Wright on his website, Reality’s Last Stand, where he argued Khelif’s post-Olympics makeover was nothing but a “hyper-feminizing PR campaign” designed to be a “distraction.”

In his blog post, Wright argued there needed to be transparency about Khelif’s gender because, “the fairness and safety of women’s boxing is at stake.”

Rowling shared the article to her own account and quoted a portion of it in the caption.

“It’s important to highlight that launching a PR campaign and applying layers of thick makeup requires far more time and effort than simply making DNA test results public.” — ✍️@SwipeWright,” she wrote.

Newsweek contacted Rowling by email for comment.

Just moments after breaking her silence, Rowling took to X again and reposted a tweet from Australian Senator Claire Chandler from the federal Liberal Party.

Chandler had posted on X in reaction to a Federal Court decision that ruled in favor of transgender woman, Roxanne Tickle, who said she had been indirectly discriminated against when her membership for “Giggle for Girls,” a social media platform exclusively for woman, was revoked.

“Today’s judgement in Giggle v Tickle confirms that women in Australia have no legal rights to single-sex spaces and services,” wrote Chandler on X. “The Sex Discrimination Act which is supposed to protect women and girls is now a tool to punish women trying to offer female-only spaces.

“This is a disgraceful and dangerous situation which reduces the rights and protections available for women and girls in our country.”

Giggle for Girls CEO Sall Grover is a self-identified “TERF”—which stands for “trans-exclusionary radical feminist.” TERFs generally reject transgender identities.

“I’m being taken to federal court by a man who claims to be a woman because he wants to use a woman-only space I created,” she posted on X. “It is a legal fiction that Tickle is a woman. His birth certificate has been altered from male to female, but he is a biological man, and always will be.”

However, others welcomed the ruling.

“We must continue to recognise the worth and dignity of every person and reject the harmful stigmas and stereotypes that cause discrimination,” said Sex Discrimination Commissioner Dr. Anna Cody of the Australian Human Rights Commission.

“No one in Australia should face exclusion or discrimination based on sex or gender identity, and we will continue to stand with trans communities and advocate for the rights of all women, including women who are trans,” Cody said.

Transcend Australia, an advocacy group for trans people pointed out the federal law was changed in 2013, making it unlawful to discriminate against a person on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity.

“Trans people have the right to equality, to access services and to live free from discrimination. Today’s ruling in the Federal Court reinforces this and we would like to congratulate Ms Roxanne Tickle. 🏳️‍⚧️,” it said on Instagram.

The Federal Court ordered Giggle for Girls to pay Tickle, A$10,000 (USD$6,700) and legal fees.

Rowling had publicly criticized Khelif’s inclusion in the recent Paris Olympics after one her opponents, Italian boxer Angela Carini, pulled out of their bout after just 46 seconds, then falling to her knees crying. She later told media “this isn’t fair” and that she had never been hit so hard.

The incident made headlines because Khelif was one of two female boxers barred from competing in the International Boxing Association (IBA) World Championships after failing an unspecified gender-verification test, despite having competed internationally for years and still being eligible to compete in other championships.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) allowed them to compete at this year’s games because the two boxers “are women according to their passports” and has also passed its own eligibility tests, which are also followed by other sporting agencies.

“Obviously I am not going to comment on individuals,” IOC spokesperson Mark Adams said at the time, per The Guardian. “That’s really invidious and unfair. But I would just say that everyone competing in the women’s category is complying with the competition eligibility rules. They are women in their passports and it is stated that is the case.”

But the IOC’s position did not influence Rowling’s opinion.

“Watch this (whole thread), then explain why you’re OK with a man beating a woman in public for your entertainment,” Rowling wrote on X following Khelif’s bout with Carini. “This isn’t sport. From the bullying cheat in red all the way up to the organizers who allowed this to happen, this is men reveling in their power over women.”

She stuck by her views by continuing to post on X, and also replying to people on the platform that disagreed with her.

The incident with Khelif sparked a global discussion, with many people incorrectly labeling the boxer as transgender.

The IOC weighed in again following the furor, by condemning the IBA’s decision.

“These two athletes were the victims of a sudden and arbitrary decision by the IBA. Towards the end of the IBA World Championships in 2023, they were suddenly disqualified without any due process,” the IOC said in a joint statement with the Paris 2024 committee.

“The current aggression against these two athletes is based entirely on this arbitrary decision, which was taken without any proper procedure – especially considering that these athletes had been competing in top-level competition for many years,” the IOC said. “Such an approach is contrary to good governance.”

Many sports bodies sometimes require women to be tested for testosterone, often women recognized as having “disorders of sex development” (DSD), more commonly known as being intersex, who are sometimes required to reduce their testosterone levels to be able to compete.

The policies also apply to women with hyperandrogenism, which is a term used to describe high levels of testosterone. But it is not known if Khelif is intersex or has hyperandrogenism.

Following the backlash and her Olympic win, Khelif returned to a hero’s welcome in her native Algeria.

Views

Many people welcomed Rowling back to X and were happy to see her posting on the platform again.

“WELCOME BACK!!! I’m so glad you’re here! Now people can stop the nonsense that you’re scared of Khelif,” said @HazelAppleyard_.

However, others criticized her.

“Your lack of cultural diversity and blindness to race differences is astounding,” wrote @chewie2023. “A conservative Muslim country like Algeria is unlikely to support someone with a gender dispute to represent them. People from other countries [may] not have the features you consider as feminine. It’s interesting how this uncovered so much racism in the white Caucasian population. You could be very wrong and you owe her a big apology and compensation for all the damages.”

Another commenter, @seanpaul day said: “I really feel for Imane Khelif. Not only has the IBA been accused of governance issues, alleged corruption and ties to Russia, but the IOC should have strategic policies in place so that the situation never accelerates to this stage. To be clear, the responsibility lies with the governing bodies, namely the IOC- not Imane Khelif. Regardless of the circumstances, no athlete should ever have to experience such humiliation again.”

What’s Next

Khelif’s lawsuit alleges she experienced “aggravated cyber-harassment” by a number of people, according to a statement from the boxer’s lawyer, Nabil Boudi, who was quoted by The Associated Press.

She spoke about the impact the speculation over her gender had on her Olympic journey, saying that “there was a lot of noise from politicians, athletes, stars, artists—Elon Musk and Donald Trump and that hurt me a lot, I cannot describe how scared I was.”

“This affected me. I’m not lying to you, it affected me a lot,” she said in an interview with Algerian network El Birad. “It hurt a lot. I can’t describe the fear I had but thank God I was able to overcome it. Thank God, all the people of Algeria and the Arab world knew Imane Khelif with her femininity, her courage, her will.”

She added: “This is a big shame for my family, for the honor of my family, for the honor of Algeria, for the women of Algeria and especially the Arab world. The whole world knows I am a Muslim girl.”

Update, 08/23/24, 10:32 a.m. ET: This article was updated to include additional information.

Update, 08/23/24, 11:18 a.m. ET: This article was updated to include information on J.K. Rowling’s latest repost and the Tickle vs. Giggle case.