George A. Yerolimpos became the new Secretary General of the IBA following the selection process and decision of the IBA Board of Directors (BoD) at its meeting in Yerevan today. The appointment is effective immediately.
In total, 50 candidates applied for the position. Four candidates were shortlisted and interviewed, and two of them were chosen by the Selection Committee to be presented for consideration by the Board of Directors. The BoD voted for Yerolimpos with a majority of 87%.
A qualified economist by education, he was previously CEO of SportAccord and Secretary General of another International Federation for 16 years. He was also a member of the Hellenic Olympic Committee until 2021.
‘I would like to thank you for your trust. It is an honor for me to be appointed Secretary General of the International Boxing Association. I will dedicate all my time to rebranding IBA at all levels, especially integrity and transparency. The IBA is my new home,’ said Yerolimpos, the newly elected IBA Secretary General.
Several important issues were also discussed at the meeting.
The BoD appointed the IBA Strategy Committee, whose chairman is IBA President Umar Kremlev. The Committee will develop, together with the Secretary General, the IBA’s long-term strategic plan which will cover 4 years. The voting process was organized in groups, according to the competency map. The following members were selected:
Rasha Al-Khamis (RSA) – 100% vote
Barry Siff (USA) – 60%
Ana Strazar (SLO) – 53%
Volodymyr Kupchak (UKR) – 80%
Patrick Bosshard (SUI) 76%
Carole Ompong (CAM) – 57%
Additional candidates from Oceania are supposed to be voted on later as they are undergoing the vetting process.
The Chairs and Vice Chairs of the newly established IBA Management and Technical Committees were selected today. In total, the IBA Headquarters received 267 CVs for eight committees, including 25% of applications from women. Newly elected people will undergo integrity checks.
The Boxing Integrity Independent Unit (BIIU) Rules were unanimously approved. Under these rules, BIIU will operate independently based on the recommendations of the Governance Reform Group. Within the BIIU Compliance Unit, two new bodies are established, including the Tribunal that will decide on ethical and disciplinary cases, and the Dispute Resolution Chamber that will resolve disputes between boxing stakeholders.
The IBA competition schedule for 2022-2024, including the hosts of World Boxing Tour events, was presented to the BoD.
The Ukrainian Boxing Federation was temporarily suspended due to government interference in the work of the national federation. The suspension will be revoked if the conditions are met: the autonomy of the federation and the recognition by the Ukrainian authorities of the elections that took place on December 17, 2021.
This decision will not affect Ukrainian athletes and the IBA will take all necessary measures to ensure the participation of Ukrainian athletes in competitions. The IBA will fully support, including financially, the Ukrainian boxing team in its participation in international competitions. Mr. Volodymyr Prodyvus is appointed to be the IBA coordinator for boxers affiliated with the Ukrainian Boxing Federation regarding their participation in competitions.
“We are deeply concerned about the state of Ukrainian boxing ever since we learned of the government interference. We will do everything to support the athletes in this situation, the suspension of the National Federation should not affect any boxer from Ukraine,” Yerolimpos said.
The IBA Extraordinary Congress will take place in Yerevan on September 25. The National Federations will vote for the necessity of the Presidential elections. If they vote in favour, the elections will be held immediately. If the Congress votes against, current President Umar Kremlev will serve for a 4-year term.
