In the aftermath of the International Olympic Committee Executive Board’s decision to form an ad hoc committee to examine whether the International Boxing Association (AIBA) should continue as the governing body over boxing, the AIBA sent a letter to the working group chief, Nenad Lalovic (SLO) asking for a January meeting to begin the process.
As part of the announcement of the letter, AIBA trumpeted the progress report it presented to the IOC that “documents that 1) AIBA now ranks in the top half of all summer International Federations according to the official ASOIF ranking; 2) AIBA is now fully compliant with the WADA Code and has signed agreements with the International Testing Agency; 3) AIBA has a new fully revamped Refereeing & Judging systems that fosters a culture of transparency and fair play which has been praised by the IOC and PwC; 4) The financial situation of AIBA is now stable with a positive cash-flow due to significant increase in revenues.”
The AIBA progress report is here.
The IOC was not amused, and the Associated Press reported that the IOC sent its own letter to all 206 National Olympic Committees “not to trust” the AIBA claims and that the letter “does not at all provide an accurate portrayal” of the IOC’s view of the situation.
Not a good way to start …