Fact-Check: AI-Generated Images of Boxer Imane Khelif Viral On Social Media

According to TrueMedia and HiveModeration, the image is made using AI.

Fact-Check: This image is generated using AI.

(Souce: The Quint) 

An image showing Algerian boxer Imane Khelif looking like a man is being shared on social media. People addressed Khelif as a "he" while sharing this image.

What did the posts say?: Users wrote, "This is the Aligerian Boxer Imane Khelif who won Gold in Olympics. He thanked Allah for his victory over a woman. Sorry Angela Carini, the world failed you!"

Who shared it?: X pages such as @ArunPudur and @MumbaichaDon (BhikuMhatre) shared the claim.

An archive of the post can be found here. 

(Source: X/Screenshot)

(Archives of similar claims can be found here and here.)

Is this true?: The image is generated using Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools.

What we found: At first, we notice some errors in the image such as a man with a deformed face in the background, man on the left with a loose hand, hand that emerges on the right seems to have a huge and out of place nail. The latter is holding a ticket where the writing is completely illegible.

• These are telltale signs of an AI-generated image.

Here are the faults in his image.

(Source: Altered by The Quint) 

• We also notice physical differences in the body structures of the viral image and Khelif's image from the Paris Olympics.

• The knee structure in the viral image is more defined and muscular than her image from the Olympics.

Here are the differences between the two. 

(Source: The Quint) 

• We also ran a Google reverse image search on the viral photo and came across the same image on X on a page called 'Midjourney Prompts' from 24 August.

• Midjourney is a generative artificial intelligence program and service.

• We, then, ran the image on AI-detection websites such as TrueMedia, Hugging Face and Hive Moderation.

• TrueMedia: The tool revealed that there was 'substantial' evidence of manipulation.

Report as presented by TrueMedia.

(Source: TrueMedia/Screenshot) 

• HuggingFace concluded that the image was 70% made using AI.

Results by HuggingFace.

(Source: HuggingFace/Screenshot) 

• Lastly, Hive Moderation concluded that the image was likely AI with a 50% probability.

Report as presented by Hive Moderation.

(Source: Hive Moderation/Screenshot) 

• On 1 August, Khelif emerged victorious over Italy's Angela Carini in an initial match for the Paris Olympics.

• Soon after, Author JK Rowling and businessman Elon Musk, among other notable figures, supported allegations that she was a "biological male" or a "transgender woman" competing in the women's division. We debunked this claim about Khelif, as well. Read the story here.

Conclusion: The image is made using AI and is being falsely shared to defame Khelif yet again.

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