IOC restates it's deepest concerns to AIBA regarding place of Boxing in Olympic Games

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Wednesday once again expressed strong concerns with regard to the situation of the International Federation.

In a letter to the International Boxing Association (AIBA), the IOC conveyed its distress caused by the "unresolved" issues with the International Boxing Association's governance structure, financial situation and the scoring system.

The IOC Executive Board restated its concerns and reiterated its previous position regarding the place of boxing in the program of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 and future editions of the Olympic Games.

The IOC Executive Board, after the conclusion of the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, heard the report presented by the Chair of the IOC Special Monitoring Committee, Nenad Lalovic, regarding the same. The International Boxing Association's President Umar Kremlev's letter was also taken into account.

IOC's letter to the AIBA

The IOC Executive Board is expected to read Professor Haas's report on AIBA's governance analysis, which is slated for the end of November 2021.

In a letter addressed to AIBA President Umar Kremlev, IOC Director General Christophe De Kepper said the Olympic body's Executive Board has asked him and its Chief Ethics and Compliance Officer to "follow up" on the situation.

The IOC expressed dissatisfaction with the work done by the AIBA to address concerns related to its governance, judging and refereeing system that has been under scrutiny since the 2016 Rio Olympics.

The IOC Executive Board was brought to notice a number of complaints regarding the judging and refereeing (R&J) at several competitions. The athletes, who participated in both the AIBA Youth World Championships and Asian Championships held earlier this year, raised issues regarding judging and refereeing.

"Based on the Terms of Reference for both experts, it seems that there is an overlap regarding the present AIBA's governance. Therefore, the IOC would be grateful if AIBA could provide some clarification and share both Professor Haas and Professor McLaren's intermediary and final reports/conclusions," the IOC letter.

"The IOC Executive Board is looking forward to receiving Professor McLaren's report on AIBA's judging system for its previous and current competitions. It is noted that the Stage 1 Report of Professor McLaren will be delivered by 30 September 2021. The IOC Executive Board was informed of a number of complaints regarding the judging and refereeing (R&J) by the participants to both the AIBA Youth World Championships and Asian Championships held earlier this year. We therefore anticipate that all such complaints and AIBA's full actions in response to such complaints will be documented in Professor McLaren's report by September 30, 2021," said IOC.