London Olympics boxing scandal follows badminton scandal

August 12, 2012 | Filed under: Sports | Posted by:

London Olympics boxing scandal that follows badminton scandal is not a good publicity for International Olympic Committee (IOC), says Raaj Datta of NVONews.Com

The cash for medal scandal in boxing at the London Olympics has turned into a legal bout between the BBC and the International Boxing Association (AIBA). The Boxing’s governing body announced Saturday that it will not let off BBC easily citing the repeated allegations on its channel.

BBC repeated Friday that the allegations it made against the governing body were true – BBC referred to the Newsnight documentary aired last September that Azerbaijan paid $10 million to the authorities in return for two gold medals.

The claim was investigated by the IOC and AIBA, but failed to find any evidence that suggested any truth in the allegations. Now, they are in the process of suing BBC.

In the meantime, both the boxers from Azerbaijan, heavyweight Teymur Mammadov and super heavyweight Magomedrasul Medzhidov have both lost their semi-finals, but have managed bronze medals.

How did the allegations spread like wildfire?
The current scoring system is still an enigma for most boxers and their managers. Even though a boxer lands more punches than the opponent, the points are not given as expected. The Mohammad Ali-style doesn’t actually work here. There is a lot of difference from how the professional bouts are awarded scores.

There is a lot of difference between how it happens and how it is actually perceived at the end.

There have been an awful lot of appeals in the London Olympics and the picture, irrespective of what is fact or ignorance, isn’t looking bright. Not for the officials at least.

This is not the first time that allegations are making rounds of the media. There have been reported incidences in the Seoul Olympics – the most famous being the U.S. boxer Roy Jones Junior losing out to his South Korean opponent.

The computer scoring system might be scrapped after all
Wu Ching-Kuo, the president of boxing’s governing body AIBA, is looking forward to replace the computer scoring system the judging system used in professional boxing before the 2016 Olympics.

The shift will have a major impact on amateur boxing, and hopefully positive. Wu said that referees and judges will need to undergo training before the changes can be applied, but he was positive about the changes to reflect in the next Olympics.

With the new scoring system in place, the in-ring fight too will change. If AIBA has its way, we might not see the protective headgear in men’s boxing. Wu also plans to increase women’s participation, following the success of women’s boxing in the London Olympics.

How will it differ from the current scoring system?
Amateur boxing is losing its sheen in many countries where professional boxing is gaining prominence. Amateur boxers will have to train differently to record a score.

AIBA plans to introduce the 10-point scoring system used in professional boxing currently. The new system will take into consideration every aspect of a boxer’s skill, not simply the capability to hit punches.

Wu is confident that it will bring back the charisma in the fighters and the fight. The system is expected to ensure that the better boxer wins.

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Posted by on August 12, 2012. Filed under Sports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry
  • http://Olympicsboxingscandal james Perry

    What a shame, the whole olympic boxing association should be investigated and rebuilt. I am so upset to see boxers awarded a medal they did not earn or deserve. It’s so blant, everyone can see that the matches were rigged. Italy vs cuba and China vs Thailand and the most obvious the japan vs Azerbaijan. The whole AIBA needs to be broken up starting with the president CK WU. Everyone is over looking the judges, they blame the referee but what about the judges scoring the fight.

  • Chris Ratcliffe

    It’s time to look back at one of the best campaigners against corruption in boxing England has ever had — the longest-serving president of the Amateur Boxing Association of England (1992-2000), former Royal Navy Chief PTI and international and Olympic boxing referee Commander Roderick Robertson, MBE.

    Here’s part of an interview with him by Sports Resolution UK, the specialist independent dispute service, after the Beijing Olympics:

    Q: There was quite a lot of controversy over the boxing results in Beijing. What did you think of the results?

    Robertson: With the removal of the previous President of AIBA there had been great hopes that his successor (and a member of the IOC) would succeed in cleaning up the sport. In the event Beijing was a disappointment in this respect and in the eyes of many experienced commentators the repercussions once again cast a cloud over the continuation of amateur boxing as an Olympic sport.

    Q: Are there any changes you would like to see in the way fights are scored?

    Robertson: I would like to see a return to the 3 x 3 minute rounds and for the authorities to have the confidence to dispense with the ‘computer scoring machine’. The problem with 4 x 2- minute rounds is that boxers have no time to develop tactics or strategies and the result is often inferior style of boxing with a lot of flurries and slapping. This makes it difficult to score.
    Also, and in too many instances, the moment a boxer feels he is a couple of points ahead he tends to ‘run’ and merely avoid punches. It is not a good spectacle. However, the most important issue is to have the courage (and independence) to identify incompetent or corrupt judges and take early and appropriate action.

    –http://www.sportresolutions.co.uk

    Since his election as chairman of the Schools Amateur Boxing Association in 2003, Cdr Robertson and his team have succeeded in establishing boxing as an option within the PE curriculum for examination at GCSE and AS/A2 level as with other sports. He is an accomplished broadcaster on behalf of amateur boxing and has served on many tribunal inquries into boxing safety and integrity.

    It’s time to bring these knights of the ring back into the fray.