14-12-2011 11:42:47

World boxing authority’s probe dismisses Azerbaijan bribery claims

Investigators of the International Boxing Association (AIBA) have dismissed allegations that Azerbaijan had paid millions as a bribe to secure gold medals at the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

The ad hoc group of investigators said Monday that the report to that end, aired by the BBC TV channel, was baseless. The five-people-strong group did not find any proof of bribery after examining thousands of documents, e-mails and financial reports.

BBC Newsnight earlier uncovered alleged evidence of secret payments to international boxing organization World Series Boxing (WSB), a claim rebuffed by the country’s boxing authority.

The boxing organizer at the Olympics, AIBA, admitted an Azerbaijani national paid $9m (£5.9m) to one of their competitions. But they deny any deal to fix medals.

AIBA President Dr Ching-Kuo Wu told Newsnight earlier that the claims were "totally untrue and ludicrous", adding that "WSB is conducted in a totally transparent way".

Azerbaijan Boxing Federation (ABF) has dismissed the allegations as well.

The AIBA said in a statement that Hamid Hamidov has made investments in World Series Boxing to assist in setting up boxing facilities but the funding has no bearing on the Olympics. It said that under an agreement signed, Hamidov would in return make a profit from the broadcasting of the boxing competition.

The investigators also said the AIBA’s executives are not the sole authority in awarding medals. Referees judging the matches are selected 10 minutes prior to each leg of the competition.

The BBC on Monday defended its bribery allegations, saying it was keen to continue the scrutiny jointly with the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) commission on ethics.

TAGS: International Boxing Association, Azerbaijan, gold medals, 2012 Olympic Games, London, AIBA President Dr Ching-Kuo Wu, Azerbaijan Boxing Federation, Hamid Hamidov