The Norwegian Boxing Association went away.
There is a mass exodus from the union led by Umar Kremlov. EPA / AOP
The Norwegian Boxing Association plans to separate from the International Boxing Association (IBA).
Norwegian Dagbladet according to the Norwegian Boxing Association will leave the sport’s umbrella organization in October. IBA is headed by a close friend of Russian President Vladimir Putin Umar Kremlinov.
Kremljov has been photographed several times with Putin, and he himself has described Putin as his friend.
Director of the Norwegian Boxing Association Haktor Slåke confirmed to Dagbladet that it is affiliated with the newly formed World Boxing Association. It has been formed by the United States, Great Britain, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand and the Philippines.
Under Kremlev, the IBA has, among other things, been thrown out of the International Olympic Committee. The eviction was related to problems in finances, administration, transparency, ethics and judicial activity.
Norway’s withdrawal from the IBA is related to the same reasons. The big reason is that boxing is no longer an Olympic sport.
– They were told to clean up certain things in 2019. They didn’t succeed in that, but got into conflict over several things. It escalated. That is the main reason, Slåke said.
Slåke also said that the Norwegian federation is not happy that there are Russians on the IBA’s leadership ladder.
The Finnish Boxing Association announced at the end of August that it would also leave the IBA. Other countries have also left the union.
Slåke is curious to see how Kremlinkov reacts to the mass exodus.
– These are exciting times in international amateur boxing. The Russian-dominated IBA has fewer and fewer member countries.