The International Olympic Committee (IOC) Executive Board announced today that it was starting an inquiry procedure against the international boxing federation, a procedure that can lead to the withdrawal of IOC recognition.
The IOC lists a number of concerns it has with AIBA, the boxing federation, most of them in the area of finance with a governance and ethics issue to boot. A 2018 report from auditors EY references “uncertainty” about AIBA’s ability to continue as the Olympic boxing governing body. EY wasn’t even able to gather enough information from AIBA to put together an audit opinion, and audit reports for both 2017 and 2018 are missing from the AIBA website, per the IOC. In addition, the IOC’s release today notes that AIBA is “unable to maintain or open a bank account in Switzerland, where its headquarters are based.”
The other side of the concerns are ethical. International boxing interim president Gafur Rakhimov was sanctioned by the U.S. Department of Treasury in 2012 and accused of being “a key member an associate of a transnational organised criminal network,” according to the IOC report.
The IOC does note that AIBA is fully compliant with the World Anti-Doping Agency and was cleared of allegations about the integrity of refereeing and judging at the 2018 Youth Olympic Games.
The IOC Executive Board’s statement notes that it will “freeze all contact with AIBA” and “freeze the planning for the Olympic boxing tournament at Tokyo 2020.” The IOC will use an ad-hoc inquiry committee to investigate AIBA and will form a recommendation for sanctions, which could include “the withdrawal of recognition for AIBA.” You can read the full IOC press release here.
