LAUSANNE: The International Boxing Association (Aiba), the governing body for amateur boxing, has named its longest-serving vice-president Gafur Rakhimov, long accused of having links to major crime syndicates in The Caucasus, as its new interim president.
The IOC has responded to the latest appointment in a statement saying that it is ‘extremely worried about the governance in Aiba’. Its chief ethics and compliance officer will give a report to the IOC’s executive board meeting in South Korea this week before the board decides on ‘further measures’.
Rakhimov was appointed interim president following the “unexpected” resignation of interim president Franco Falcinelli at Aiba’s wxtraordinary congress held in Dubai at the weekend. It was attended by 109 national federations, including USA, Russia, France, China, Brazil, South Africa and Cuba.
The one-day congress was called to address allegations of mismanagement under former president CK Wu. A vote to name Wu as honorary president was rejected by an absolute majority.
Rakhimov has pledged to restore financial stability and transparency to Aiba.
“We must work closely with national federations and with the International Olympic Committee to restore confidence in Aiba’s financial management and in its integrity,” he stated. “This means greater transparency and improved corporate governance of Aiba, together with independent audits that are conducted in the light of day and not hidden from the Aiba executive committee and NFs as happened last year.”
Rakhimov said he would work together with Falcinelli to continue the work of reform and restructuring undertaken so far. Rakhimov said he had “great confidence in the talents of Franco Falcinelli”, who was named executive vice president and who will also be in charge of developing a new foundation plan for AIBA for 2018 and beyond.
Rakhimov also named Tom Virgets, current chairman of the Aiba disciplinary commission, as Aiba’s new executive director.
According to the Associated Press, the US Treasury Department has described Rakhimov as ‘having moved from extortion and car theft to becoming one of Uzbekistan’s leading criminals and an important person involved in the heroin trade’. He has been linked to the crime group ‘Thieves-in-Law’, and is alleged to have supported their activities by ‘providing warning of law enforcement issues, arranging meetings, and addressing other problems’.
The US Treasury Department Office of Foreign Assets Control has also frozen Rakhimov’s assets in American jurisdiction.
