My dear boxers and friends,

At AIBA, the month of February has been eventful and overall quite positive – we are on track for the year and I am confident about months to ahead.

As you know, the AIBA Executive Committee gathered in Istanbul earlier this month for two days of fruitful reflections focused on the future of our organisation and our sport. The various decisions stemming from these meetings included the implementation of new technical and competition rules as well as amendments to our rulings on uniforms, including the addition of boxers having the possibility to add their country colors and permitting the use of hijabs in competition. These resolutions reflect AIBA’s determination to progress and look ahead. They promote diversity, inclusion and, most importantly, they put our boxers first – we can be proud of that.

Previously this month, AIBA also handed in its report to the International Olympic Committee’s Ad-Hoc Committee, providing answers to the extensive list of questions which it had submitted and demonstrating a willingness to be fully transparent. AIBA has made great progress in the past year and is now looking to resolve any outstanding misunderstandings in order to focus on the future.

I also had the chance to attend the European Boxing Confederation (EUBC) General Assembly last weekend in Moscow. While there are still quite some areas in which the EUBC can continue to improve its governance practices, I was encouraged by spirit and willingness for change in the room. For the first time in a long time, there were open discussions and constructive dialogue and decisions were made through a democratic voting process to ensure fairness and representativeness. Furthermore, I was also very pleased to welcome the resolution which was passed on this occasion and which reaffirmed the EUBC’s support of AIBA as the governing body of Olympic Boxing.

I look forward to the months ahead and to coming back to you in March with more good news around AIBA’s continuous progress. We are committed to the advancement of boxing and I can assure you that we are all working very hard to attain our goals as an organisation.

Yours sincerely,

Gafur Rahimov
President, AIBA

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