The Board of Directors of the International Boxing Association (IBA) voted to cancel its previous decision and allow Russian and Belarusian boxers to participate in IBA competitions effective immediately.
The IBA insists on the stance that politics should have no influence on the sport. Consequently, all athletes should be given a fair playing field.
"As we respect our autonomy as an international sports federation, the IBA must remain politically neutral and independent. The IBA calls for peace and remains a peacemaker in all conflicts. In addition, the IBA is obliged to ensure equal treatment of athletes and competition officials, regardless of their nationality and place of residence," writes the press service of the association.
According to the decision, judges and technical officials from Russia and Belarus will also resume their activities.
The IBA announced earlier that Ukrainian athletes can compete under their flag despite the temporary suspension of the Boxing Federation of Ukraine (FBU). According to the decision of the Board of Directors of the IBA, the Ukrainian anthem can be played at the competitions, and Ukrainian referees will be allowed to officiate.
Recall that the current IBA President is Russian boxer Umar Kremlev who was re-elected to a new term at the congress of the organization on May 14 in Istanbul.
