While Milan Fashion Week is always a starry sight to behold, Bottega Veneta’s front row featured an extra flash of gold. Imane Khelif, the Olympic boxing champion from Algeria, joined Kendall Jenner, Jacob Elordi, Yara Shahidi, Julianne Moore, and Michelle Yeoh (among others) at Matthieu Blazy’s spring 2025 runway.
For her foray into high fashion, the gold medalist wore look 50 from Bottega’s fall 2024 collection, donning a mustard yellow button-up leather shacket crafted in Blazy’s signature leather, along with a pair of black leather trousers. While she left her medal at home, Khelif wore a pair of the Italian house’s viral drop earrings—in gold, of course.
The 25-year-old boxer made international news during the 2024 Paris Olympics when Italy’s Angela Carini refused to shake Khelif’s hand following their 46-second match, which Carini deemed “not fair.” (Carini later issued an apology and recognized Khelif’s right to compete.) The incident, which was sparked by a 2023 International Boxing Association ruling that disqualified Khelif from the world boxing championship in New Dehli due to “competitive advantages over other female competitors,” sparked a racist and transphobic firestorm against her. The experience loomed large over Khelif’s Games. After her win, she said: “I am fully qualified to take part. I’m a woman like any other woman. I was born a woman, I lived a woman, I competed as a woman, there’s no doubt about that.”