International Olympic Committee expels International Boxing Association headed by a Russian

Ukrainska Pravda
·2 min read

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has expelled the International Boxing Association (IBA), headed by Russian citizen Umar Kremlev, from its membership.

Source: Ukrinform referring to the press service of the IOC

Details: The IOC Executive Board has concluded that the IBA had not fulfilled the conditions set for it. A total of 69 IOC members voted in favour and 1 against.

At the same time, the organisation recommends that boxing remain on the program of the next Olympic Games to be held in Paris in 2024.

Previously:

  • Suspilne reports that in 2019 the IOC suspended the IBA from organising the Olympic boxing tournament. The reason for this was accusations of financial, judicial and ethical problems.

  • On 7 June, the IOC Executive Council considered the IBA report and recommended to the IOC session to finally exclude the boxing association from the list of members of the organisation. On 22 June, the IOC session was supposed to vote on the future of the International Boxing Association.

Background:

  • In October 2022, the IBA announced that it would once again allow athletes from Russia and Belarus to compete as the IBA remains "politically neutral".

  • The sanctions were imposed in response to the full-scale war against Ukraine. They consisted of banning representatives of the Russian and Belarusian national teams from competitions. In July, Ukraine called on its international partners to ban Russians and Belarusians from competing in sporting events, even under neutral flags. However, in September, the president of the IBA, Russian citizen Umar Kremlev, called for the sanctions to be lifted.

  • In late September, the IBA banned Ukrainian boxers from competing under the national flag at the European Junior Championships. They will compete under the IBA flag.

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