Algerian boxer Imane Khelif, the reigning Olympic champion, will box as a professional for the first time since the Paris 2024 Games. She will face Clarida Sarabia in Paris on December 15, 2026. She announced the bout at a news conference on November 6, 2026. It will be her first fight in more than two years.
What Khelif Announced in Paris
The 27-year-old appeared alongside her coach Kamel Abdesselam and promoter Yacin Berrabah. She said she will fight Clarida Sarabia in the super-welterweight class on December 15. The event will be held at the Maison de la Mutualité in Paris. Khelif holds a women’s professional license from the French Boxing Federation.
She spoke about her long absence. “It’s been over two years since I last boxed, and I’ve really missed being in the ring,” Khelif said. She called recent years hard and said the moment had come to turn professional.
Her coach set an ambitious goal. Abdesselam said he believes Khelif could win a world title “within three to five fights”.
Why Khelif’s Return Matters
Khelif has not competed since the Olympics, and part of the reason is a change in eligibility rules for women’s amateur boxing. In June 2025 she could not take part in the Eindhoven tournament. One week before it began, World Boxing, the sport’s international federation, had introduced mandatory chromosome testing. She has not taken part in World Boxing events since.
Moving to the professional ranks puts her under a different set of rules. Her license comes from France’s national federation, not from the amateur federation. The December bout will be her first competitive appearance since the gender debate at the Games.
The fight also stands out because of who she is. Khelif is the first Algerian female Olympic boxing gold medalist. The December bout is being billed as her professional debut, but it is not her first paid fight. She had one professional fight in November 2023, defeating Suwanun Antanai via third-round TKO in Singapore.
Background: The Paris 2024 Gender Row
Khelif reached the quarterfinals of the women’s lightweight event at the Tokyo Olympics. She won silver at the 2022 IBA Women’s World Boxing Championships. In 2023 she was disqualified from that year’s IBA world championships after failing an unspecified gender-eligibility test.
The International Olympic Committee criticized that disqualification and upheld Khelif’s right to compete in Paris. After she beat Italy’s Angela Carini in the round of 16, she faced intense scrutiny and false claims about her gender. During the Games, Khelif said she had been bullied.
She went on to win the women’s 66-kilogram title. In the final she beat China’s Yang Liu by a unanimous decision on all five judges’ cards. Khelif was born female, though she has often been accused of being transgender. In February 2026 she told the French sports daily L’Equipe that she had undergone hormonal treatment to lower her testosterone levels ahead of the Paris Olympics.
What to Watch Next for Khelif
The fight with Sarabia at the Maison de la Mutualité on December 15, 2026, is the only confirmed date. It will be Khelif’s first fight since August 2024 and her first at super-welterweight. No later bouts or title fights have been announced.
FAQ
– When and where is Imane Khelif’s next fight?
She fights Clarida Sarabia on December 15, 2026, at the Maison de la Mutualité in Paris. It is a super-welterweight bout.
– Why hasn’t Khelif boxed since the Olympics?
World Boxing introduced mandatory chromosome testing in 2025, and she missed a June 2025 tournament in Eindhoven as a result. She has not taken part in the federation’s events since then.
– Is this really her first professional fight?
No. It is being called her professional debut, but she won one professional bout in Singapore in November 2023, before the Paris Olympics.