Azerbaijan pays ‘to fix 2012 Olympic boxing medals’?
11:48 – 23.09.11
BBC Newsnight has uncovered evidence of secret payments of millions of
dollars from Azerbaijan to international boxing organization World
Series Boxing (WSB).
Whistleblowers say that WSB’s chief claimed the money was in return
for a guarantee that Azerbaijani fighters would win two boxing gold
medals at the London 2012 Olympics.
The boxing organizer at the Olympics, AIBA, admits an Azeri national
paid $9m (£5.9m) to one of their competitions.
But they deny any deal to fix medals.
Lawyers for the International Amateur Boxing Association (AIBA) told
the BBC that any such allegation was “preposterous and utterly
untrue”.
That view was backed by AIBA President Dr Ching-Kuo Wu, who told
Newsnight that the claims were “totally untrue and ludicrous”, adding
that “WSB is conducted in a totally transparent way”.
However, he said that AIBA had a zero tolerance policy on corruption
and that he would conduct an immediate investigation into the
allegations.
The AIBA is the international governing body for the sport of boxing
recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). World Series
Boxing, a franchised league of professional boxing, is one of its
initiatives.
Whistleblowers from inside boxing approached Newsnight with
allegations about the Chief Operating Officer of the AIBA’s World
Series Boxing (WSB), Ivan Khodabakhsh.
WSB had run into financial difficulties in America and was in need of funding.
‘Medals being sold’
The insiders said Mr Khodabakhsh told them that a secret deal had been
done to secure funding from Azerbaijan in return for manipulation of
the Olympic boxing tournament to guarantee gold medals for Azerbaijani
fighters.
I deny that I have offered anyone two gold medals or have any
understanding that anybody else has offered two gold medals to
Azerbaijan’
One insider told Newsnight: “Ivan boasted to a few of us that there
was no need to worry about World Series Boxing having the coin to pay
its bills. As long as the Azeris got their medals, WSB would have the
cash.”
Another said that Mr Khodabakhsh came in and said: “We are safe now –
Azerbaijan came in – we have to give them medals for that.”
“He was talking about gold medals in London in return for millions of
dollars of secret payments,” the insider added. “Medals are being sold
so blatantly it’s amazing.”
But Mr Khodabakhsh told Newsnight that claims that there was any deal
with Azerbaijan were “an absolute lie”.
“I deny that I have offered anyone two gold medals or have any
understanding that anybody else has offered two gold medals to
Azerbaijan,” he added.
AIBA has previously claimed that the money for WSB America came from a
private Swiss company, but documents obtained by Newsnight show
communications between Mr Khodabakhsh, AIBA executive director Ho Kim
and Azerbaijan’s Minister for Emergency Situations Kamaladdin Heydarov
about an investment agreement for a $10m loan.
These include an e-mail from Mr Khodabakhsh to the ministry in
Azerbaijan with the following request: “Please transfer the investment
money soonest possible to the WSB America account.”
‘Go-between’
Newsnight interviewed Mr Khodabakhsh earlier this month in
Switzerland, where WSB have offices, and asked him about the source of
the money.
“The money for WSB America came from an investment company here based
in Switzerland,” he said.
However, lawyers for AIBA and WSB, have now confirmed that although
the money was paid through a Swiss company it actually came from
Azerbaijan. But they deny that it was from the government there.
They say that the government minister, Mr Heydarov, introduced a
private Azerbaijani investor to WSB and that the minister and his
assistant acted as the interface between the two since the investor
did not speak good English.
Newsnight tried to contact Mr Heydarov via his office, but has
received no response.
To date the anonymous investor has contributed $9m to WSB America.
Sporting events promoter Barry Hearn was asked to look at the
economics of WSB when it was first mooted in 2009 and came to the
conclusion that it could not make money.
He told Newsnight he was surprised that any investor would think that
it offered the opportunity for high returns:
“If an investor comes into this scheme with $10m I can only think he’s
arrived from another planet”.
There have been repeated allegations of corruption in Olympic boxing
competitions.
The legendary boxing commentator Jim Neilly told Newsnight “There have
been enough incidences down the years to suggest there has been
collusion”.
Speaking to Newsnight, AIBA President Dr Wu said his organization had
spent the last four years “cleaning the house of boxing” and that any
corruption or manipulation within the sport was not tolerated.
Tert.am