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Ban on Kosovo may rob India of men’s world boxing championship in 2021
India, which does not recognise Kosovo, has expressed a strong interest in hosting the 2032 Olympics and 2030 Asian Games.
India face the threat of losing the elite Men’s Boxing World Championships in 2021 after a Kosovo boxer was denied visa for the ongoing women’s championships here, the international boxing federation (AIBA) has said.
AIBA, in a media release on Friday, said it will consider “re-opening the bidding process” for the tournament.
“Any boxer shouldn’t be affected by any political decision while trying to achieve the dream of competing at the international level. Politics and sports should in no way be mixed. We appreciate the efforts made by the Boxing Federation of India, but AIBA will need to reconsider the 2021 Men’s World Championships bid,” said AIBA president Gafur Rakhimov.
Boxing Federation of India president Ajay Singh said it was a matter of concern. “BFI has tried to persuade the government of India (on the Kosovo issue) and will continue to do so. The Indian Olympic Association has also written to the government. I think the GOI will find a way to ensure such an incident does not happen again,” said Singh.
The Indian government doesn’t recognise Kosovo, a disputed territory in South Eastern Europe. The issue has been hogging the limelight for a week now after Kosovo’s Donjeta Sadiku was denied an Indian visa for the second time. She earlier missed the Youth World Boxing Championships in Guwahati last year.
Saying Spain last week relaxed their visa rules for athletes from Kosovo, the Olympic Council of Asia president Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah wrote to Sports Minister Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore on Thursday highlighting that India’s stance was against the Olympic Charter. Al-Sabah added the ban on Kosovo could jeopardize India’s chances of hosting major international tournaments.
The Indian Olympic Association is planning to bid for the 2026 Youth Olympics, among others.
A top government source said the Kosovo issue was not in the realms of the sports ministry. “We have taken it up with the Ministry of External Affairs and it’s their call at the end of the day,” the source said, hinting that pressure tactics will not work in diplomatic matters.
READ: India may miss out on hosting big-ticket events due to Kosovo row: IOA
The AIBA executive director Tom Virgets said the international federation was aware of the International Olympic Committee protocols.
“We turned down Ukraine for the world championships that are now going to take place in Sochi because they had the same problem. It’s an area we cannot compromise.”
Virgets said the AIBA executive committee will meet in January-end to decide on the bidding process for the men’s world meet if assurances do not come from the Indian government by then.
“There is a small window. We have to put out these bids in not too distant future in January-February. If the Indian government can assure that all boxers will receive visas and won’t be denied for political reasons, it will make a difference.”
BFI was also planning to bid for the Asian Olympic qualifying tournament. “Indian boxing is aggressively doing better and better, they have a business plan and developing rapidly. We would love to work side by side and assist them but this is one area we cannot compromise,” said Virgets.
