AIBA Executive Committee extends deep appreciation to President Rahimov

March 25, 2019 – Over the weekend, the AIBA Executive Committee met for a telephone conference, called for by the AIBA President Gafur Rahimov in order to discuss his decision to step aside from the Presidency in accordance with AIBA Statutes and Bylaws.

In light of this notification by the President, the Executive Committee have regrettably accepted this decision. However, the AIBA EC would like to extend their great appreciation to President Rahimov for his commitment to the sport of boxing and for his efforts in helping to turn around the organization during his tenure.

During the AIBA Executive Committee meeting several EC members nominated Mohamed Moustahsane to step in as Interim AIBA President. This nomination was accepted by Mr Moustahsane. As per AIBA regulations, the AIBA Executive Committee will be requested to formally appoint him as Interim President by mail vote in the coming days. The process should be completed at the latest by the end of March to ensure that a smooth transition is made.

AIBA further received additional follow-up questions by the IOC ad-hoc inquiry committee last Friday afternoon, which will be answered by AIBA in due time. AIBA is however surprised that no further information was provided with regards to the hearing requested nor did a hearing with the IOC ad-hoc committee take place. Nonetheless, the AIBA EC is confident that this committee as well as the IOC Executive Board have enough information from AIBA to close the inquiry and move forward.

Finally, the interim audited accounts which closed on 31.12.2018 have now been published. Those accounts confirm the improvement in AIBA’s financial situation under President Rahimov’s mandate, notably that AIBA’s debt was reduced by almost USD 3,000,000 in the last six months due to the exercised discipline and fiscal policies implemented. The audit further confirms the reliability of AIBA’s projections presented early in 2019. While AIBA remains over-indebted due to mismanagement of the past, the 2018 accounts show that AIBA’s financial situation is viable and that any outstanding debt will be solved in the future, subject to its Olympic presence.

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For all further questions or inquiries, please contact AIBA CEO Tom Virgets via email at virgets@aiba.org

About AIBA

The International Boxing Association (AIBA) is the worldwide governing body for the sport of boxing in all its form with a total of 203 Member Federations. AIBA works on behalf of all levels of boxing, women and men, to reinvigorate the sport’s grass roots, develop youth and elite boxing and create new opportunities for semi-pro and pro-boxers. AIBA’s vision for boxing also embraces and adheres to the spirit and values of the Olympic Movement. With these values, AIBA ensures the highest levels of transparent standards including for all global competitions, rankings, judging and boxers’ remuneration. AIBA is headquartered in the "Olympic Capital" Lausanne, Switzerland.

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