Iba: “Vile recommendation”
IOC wants to throw scandalous boxer association out
6/7/2023 9:43 p.m
The IOC Executive Committee recommends withdrawing recognition from the controversial World Boxing Federation. The Iba has already been suspended since 2019. A decision will be made in a few days. Boxing should remain part of the program for the 2024 Olympics.
The executive of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has recommended withdrawing recognition from the controversial world boxing association Iba. At the same time, the executive made a strong case for boxing to be included in the program for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. The executive and the German IOC President Thomas Bach have called an extraordinary general meeting to make a decision in this regard. The session is scheduled to take place on June 22nd.
According to the announcement, the decision against the Iba is based on the report by the Olympic umbrella organization from the beginning of June on the situation of the boxing association. It stated that the Iba “did not meet the conditions” that the IOC had set for re-admission in December 2021. In a statement, the Iba spoke of a “disgusting and purely political” recommendation. The results of the last two years have been ignored and not taken into account. The association announced that it would “require a fair assessment” from a competent court.
A day earlier, the boxing association around the controversial Russian President Umar Kremlev had published a report to prevent an imminent exclusion from the Olympic program. In it, the Iba assured that all the concerns of the IOC had been addressed. The association is therefore convinced that it meets all the necessary criteria, including good governance, finances and sporting integrity.
The Iba has been suspended by the IOC since 2019, among other things because of dubious association management and a lack of financial transparency. As a result, boxing was removed from the Olympic program for the 2028 Los Angeles Games. The qualification for Paris 2024 and the Olympic fights are in the hands of a task force set up by the IOC – as was the case at the Tokyo Olympics. A number of national federations have set up a competitive federation called World Boxing, which is due to be officially established in November.