Fixing allegations against Boxing bouts at Rio Games

According to the report by the Guardian, senior officials in the sport’s governing body, AIBA, believe that a set of referees and judges are manipulating the draws and fixing the bouts to help certain boxers win in the tournament.

“One senior figure said there was “no doubt” some of the judges and referees in Rio “will be corrupted”. He alleged a group of referees get together before major championships to decide how to score certain bouts,” said the report.

AIBA has undertaken major governance changes ensuring the long-term development of our sport according to the requirements of our business and sport partners and for the benefits of the AIBA worldwide community."

AIBA spokesperson

Allegations against Boxing bouts in the Olympics have been around ever since Seoul 1988. The judging at the Games was severely criticised after the light middleweight gold-medal contest between American Roy Jones Jr and South Korean Park Si-hun was awarded to the Korean, even after he looked second-best all throughout the bout.

In the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Romanian former International Boxing Association (AIBA) vice-president Rudel Obreja had alleged the fixing of the judges’ draw. In the last edition of the Games, there were allegations that Azerbaijan, which loaned $10m to AIBA to underwrite a professional boxing series, had bought the medals. However, an investigation by AIBA rejected the allegations.

“Since June 2015, AIBA has undertaken major governance changes ensuring the long-term development of our sport according to the requirements of our business and sport partners and for the benefits of the AIBA worldwide community,” an AIBA spokesperson had told the Guardian this week.

Some bouts are so bloody blatant it’s obvious. It sickens me to my stomach."

Unnamed Official

However, unnamed senior officials have claimed that judges are directed to score in a certain way in many bouts.

“This is all being done very quietly,” said one senior source. “Some bouts are so bloody blatant it’s obvious. It sickens me to my stomach.”

Another official told the newspaper that he believed "the manipulation was directed from the heart of the AIBA administration" and that he had "witnessed scores being manipulated at major championships" and that he is "desperately concerned about what is likely to happen at the Rio Olympics."

Boxing events at the Rio Games will start on August 6 with the preliminary rounds in men's light flyweight, lightweight, light heavyweight and heavyweight events.