Perched in his wheelchair at the head of a Caribbean hotel table, Anwar Chowdhry had no doubt his 20-year reign as amateur boxing's top official would continue past the weekend.
The 84-year-old president of the International Boxing Association is facing what could be the toughest, and possibly last, election of his career.
Taiwanese challenger Wu Ching-kuo said he has locked up essential support from delegates angry over allegations of corruption and worried about the sport's future.
PHOTO: AP
But Chowdhry said he would be re-elected yesterday because Wu was unqualified for the job.
"I have to do it because there is no choice," Chowdhry said. "(Wu) doesn't know anything about boxing."
The sport's long-time Pakistani leader entered this week's quadrennial Congress dogged by allegations that he hid personal expenses and stalled reforms demanded by the International Olympic Committee. The IOC froze more than US$9 million set aside for the organization last year to force changes in judge selection.
Wu and others say they're concerned the sport could be kicked out of the Olympics, concerns that Chowdhry called "stupid."
The 60-year-old Wu was equally confident of a victory yesterday, saying he had won the support of delegations including the US and China, which despite its rivalry with Wu's native Taiwan has worked with him on plans for the 2008 Olympic Games.
An architect and former basketball player in Taiwan, Wu is an IOC member who previously served as an committee chairman. He has proposed reforms such as increased marketing, new television contracts and the installation of scoreboards to allow fans to see how judges score fights in real time.
Wu said the changes, especially the television contracts and scoreboards, are necessary to preserve the sport. And to get those in place, he said, Chowdhry must be defeated.
"Currently it's a one-man decision," Wu told AP. "If we can make these changes, I can guarantee boxing will be safe."
Boxing has been one of the main sports of the modern Olympics, which began in 1896, but the officiating has caused an uproar several times. A glaring example came at the 1988 Seoul Games when Roy Jones was denied the gold medal despite dominating Park Si-hun of South Korea in the final.
Delegates were also scheduled to consider the IOC's rule changes for judge selection.
Taiwanese gymnast Tang Chia-hung on Sunday topped the men’s horizontal bar event at the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) World Cup in Osijek, Croatia, scoring 15.233 to take his third title this season. Tang delivered an outstanding performance in the final, earning a difficulty score of 6.500 and an execution score of 8.633 with a 0.1 stick bonus. His closest competitor was Milad Karimi of Kazakhstan, who finished second with 14.933 points. It was Tang’s third gold medal in the FIG World Cup series this year, following his horizontal bar wins in Azerbaijan on March 8, and in Turkey on March
This year’s Taiwan Athletics Open, which offers Taiwanese athletes an opportunity to compete against their international peers, would be held under a new name after its organizers had earlier announced the event’s cancelation. In a statement issued yesterday, the Chinese Taipei Athletics Association said the competition would still take place on June 6-7 at Banciao Stadium, but under the name “New Taipei City Athletics Open 2026.” The event was given a new name to emphasize its local identity and conform with the international practice of naming World Athletics Tour events after cities, the association said. It said it would soon
Taiwan’s Lee Hao-yu on Friday went 0-for-3 in his MLB debut for the Detroit Tigers against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park, becoming the 19th Taiwan-born player to reach the big leagues. The Tigers ultimately lost 1-0 in 10 innings, ending their six-game winning streak. The 23-year-old started at third base and batted eighth for Detroit. He was promoted from Triple-A Toledo ahead of the four-game series against the Red Sox at the latter’s home stadium, replacing injured utility player Zach McKinstry. “Being right-handed, and given our schedule, I think six of the next 12 games are going to
Matheus Cunha on Saturday fired Manchester United toward the UEFA Champions League with a 1-0 win at Chelsea, while Tottenham Hotspur remain in the relegation zone after twice blowing the lead to draw with Brighton & Hove Albion. Chelsea failed to take advantage of a United defense ravaged by injury and suspension as a fourth straight league defeat for the Blues left their Champions League hopes in ruins. United have missed out on the riches of Europe’s elite competition for the past two seasons, but are closing in on a return thanks to an upturn in fortunes under interim manager
RSS