Wu's woes weigh heavy on AIBA
The President of the AIBA, Dr Ching Kuo Wu has given the clearest indication of what he thinks of the BBC Newsnight programme, which alleged that in return for two gold medals for Azerbaijan at the forthcoming London Olympics, the World Series of Boxing (WSB) would allegedly receive a loan of $9 million from an unnamed private investor from within Azerbaijan.
C.K. Wu has immediately set up a Special Investigation Committee headed by the US Boxing President Tom Virget to carry out an in depth investigation into the allegations. This is whole heartedly supported by both the IOC in the form of its President Jacques Rogge and the ABAE.
This latest blow to AIBA and the sport of amateur boxing comes after Wu’s re-election as President of the world governing body in November 2010, four years after ousting Professor Anwar Chowdry in a concerted drive to eliminate the alleged institutional corruption of the former regime.
The WSB, which was the “brainchild” of C.K. Wu, would appear to have run into some financial difficulties with the American franchise teams and it appears that the mysterious benefactor who wishes to remain anonymous (why would he/she do that I wonder?) has loaned the WSB the sum in question, on the basis of a commercial arrangement.
It is worth noting though that AIBA admitted that Azeri Government Minister Heydarov and his assistant acted as an interface between the WSB and the un-named benefactor from Azerbaijan, on the basis that he/she didn’t speak good English! Now call me naive if you wish, but I’d have thought that the object of any “commercial” arrangement was to make money, and if the WSB are not doing so with the financial problems of the American franchises, what hope is there of recouping such an investment without the whole hearted participation of the United States?
Perhaps after all there is an Azeri billionaire with an altruistic streak, and an undying love of amateur boxing which has prompted him or her to lavish this not insubstantial sum of money on the sport, for the love of a Corinthian ideal irrespective of their ability to understand what was being said at the meeting and doesn’t see the need for filthy capitalist dividends on his investment?
I have had some experience of the former regime and the machinations used to garner support that dominated congresses in the past, where corruption was ever present in the form of patronage. It would indeed be a short-sighted judge/referee who saw fit to bite the hand that stroked him especially when addressed en masse by the head of the R&J committee. Any such myopic official would be highly unlikely to grace future Olympics/World Championships as long as his backside pointed downwards.
In this context I welcome the advent of Dr C.K. Wu and his campaign to purge the old regime, and bring the sport of amateur boxing in to the 21st century, and I sincerely hope this latest blot on the paper is just that - a blot which can be dried out and cleaned up.
However, I must harbour some doubts and question the timing of the release, coming as it does the week before the opening of the 2011 AIBA World Championships, being held in of all places, the Azerbaijan capital, Baku.
Who’d be the judge to award a bout to an Azeri boxer when involved in a close fight, now that this allegation is in the public domain?
