Wu Return to AIBA Said Impossible

(ATR) The return of C.K. Wu to the presidency of Olympic boxing federation AIBA is "impossible", a spokesman for the ruling Executive Committee tells Around the Rings.

Wu was suspended by the EC when it met in Dubai last week. He is accused of financial mismanagement and secret dealings that have put the federation at risk of insolvency.

"Based on the situation that we are in these were probably the two most important days of Executive Committee meetings that have ever been held in the history of AIBA," said Pat Fiacco, a member of the EC.

Fiacco and colleagues on the EC have been trying to wrest control of the federation since late July when they first accused Wu of misleading the committee on AIBA'sfinancial situation.

Wu was provisionally suspended in October with Franco Falcinelli, a federation vice president from Italy designated as interim president.

Since then, Wu has failed to win an emergency ruling from a Swiss court that would have blocked his suspension. A full hearing is set for Nov. 10 in Lausanne, but Fiacco is confident that the EC will prevail.

In the past few weeks since taking charge of headquarters operations in Lausanne, Fiacco notes evidence of additional instances of mismanagement and financial irregularity have been found.

Most shocking, he says, was the discovery that AIBA had been in negotiations with retired heavyweight champion and 1996 Olympic gold medalist Wladimir Klitschko to take over as AIBA president.

Detailed in a draft letter of intent seen by ATR, a plan is detailed that would have taken Klitschko from a vice president appointed by Wu to a member of the EC who becomes president one day.

Fiacco says confidentiality of the negotiations between Klitschko and AIBA prevented him from naming the Ukraine boxer as the individual negotiating the deal. But he could not deny the disappointment of the EC that Wu was considering such an extra-legal arrangement.

"This was a shock, that the president can negotiate such a contract which is totally contrary to the statutes. It would have been impossible to be approved. The statutes do not allow this to happen," says Fiacco.

Fiacco says Wu will have the chance to explain his side of the story at an extraordinary congress Jan. 27 in Dubai. The meeting has been called to cast a vote of no confidence in Wu. Should the vote reject Wu, he would be permanently removed as AIBA president.

Wu, 72, has been AIBA president since 2006. His third term is over in November 2018. He is also an IOC member in Chinese Taipei, but so far his troubles with AIBA have not affected his IOC status. The IOC says it will take no action while court proceedings are underway.

Fiacco says with the difficult situation AIBA faces financially, Wu cannot return to the federation.

"It’s Impossible for him to return. We have creditors who will not negotiate with us if he returns," says Fiacco.

A $10 million loan from Azerbaijan company Benkons is the largest debt that is known to be on the books at AIBA.

"If Benkons had demanded the $10 million, we would be in trouble. We are in negotiations with the company," he says.

An Aug. 5 letter from auditor KPMG to Wu was another discovery Fiacco and colleagues made in the past few weeks. The letter makes it clear that it regarded AIBA finances to be in perilous shape, despite Wu publicly insisting there were no problems.

"We are not sure why over the past few months C.K. Wu has over and over again communicated to the national federations and the media that AIBA has no debts, that we are financially healthy and sound when clearly the letter from KPMG does not tell us that. I don’t understand why he has been in denial," says Fiacco.

"I am confident over the next year we’ll be OK, but we’re going to have to watch every dollar we spend," he says about the situation.

"We’ll look at our revenue opportunities and ways we can reduce expenses without causing any negative impact on the operation of the organization," says Fiacco.

He says AIBA events, such as the upcoming AIBA Youth Women’s World Championships in Guwahati, India are not affected by the leadership crisis. The championships take place Nov. 19-26.

"As in the case of the world championships we held in Hamburg in August, it’s the local organizing committee that does the heavy lifting. We are on track for Guwahati," says Fiacco.

He is optimistic that AIBA will survive the challenges it faces.

"We are working extremely hard to put together a financial plan that insures the sustainability of AIBA for years to come.

"The Executive Committee is committed to steering this ship in a new direction, a direction of total transparency within the organization," says Fiacco.

Reported by Ed Hula.