AIBA extends removal of accreditation to Stanimira Petrova

New Delhi: The International Boxing Association (AIBA) on Tuesday has extended the removal of accreditation to Bulgarian boxer Stanimira Petrova due to her unacceptable and unsportsmanlike conduct at the conclusion of her bout against Sonia Chahal of India.

Reflecting on the same, AIBA Executive Director Tom Virgets said, “The Bulgarian boxer Stanimira Petrova has shown inappropriate behaviour at the conclusion of her participation in the event. After 197 bouts in five days conducted under the highest standards of level playing field Petrova has made false and misleading statements regarding the AIBA Official.”

“In doing so, she (Petrova) has disrespected her opponent (Sonia), the judges, the referee, the event organisers (Boxing Federation of India), and AIBA. Unfortunately, her actions are reflective of her coach (Petar Yosifov Lesov) who disrespects and tries to damage the credibility of the sport we all love and defend,” he added.

While talking about the fairness in the prestigious tournament, Virgets said, “AIBA has recently put into place, many safeguards to ensure fairness within the competition, and I am very pleased with the results. But we must also change the culture of our coaches and athletes who have been taught that it is acceptable to yell corruption without providing evidence, every time they lose a close bout. This culture must also change, and our coaches and athletes must develop the habits of good sportsmanship.”

After the featherweight (57 kg) boxer’s bout on Monday, Petrova accused the judges of corruption, while her coach, Petar Yosifov Lesov, who threw a bottle inside the ring to protest the result, was barred from ringside for the remainder of the tournament.

Meanwhile, Sonia, in her defence, said that the decision was taken by all the judges so it was fair. “How can all the five judges go wrong? It was a fair decision,” she said.

Earlier on Monday, AIBA removed the accreditation of Petrova ‘s coach stating, “AIBA has decided to remove the accreditation, and therefore the right to be in the corner, from the coach of the Bulgarian delegation Petar Yosifov Lesov (BUL) due to his unacceptable behavior after the decision of the Bout Number 177 Session 9 Ring B involving Stanimira Petrova (BUL) and Sonia (IND).”

The incident will be forwarded to the Disciplinary Commission for further review.

[source_without_link]ANI[/source_without_link]