New AIBA Refereeing and Judging system positively received by athletes and officials

Lausanne, November 29th, 2018 – With two major events coming to a close, the International

Boxing Association (AIBA) is pleased to report that the changes and updates with regards to its

Refereeing and judging (R&Js) system and regulations are being positively received by athletes and

technical officials alike.

Since 2016, AIBA has fully revamped its R&Js management systems to foster a culture of

transparency and fair play, in and out of the boxing ring. The new system in place was tested for the

first time during the 2018 Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires, Argentina and yet again at the

recent 2019 AIBA Women’s World Championships in Delhi, India. PriceWaterhouseCooper (PwC), the

leading audit firm in Switzerland was charged with the independent monitoring and reviewing during

the first implementation. PwC positively reviewed the new systems, indicating that the changes made

were good and producing the desired results. Highlighted changes include:

 The return of having five judges’ scores a bout;

 The removal of the President and Executive Director from the appointment and approval

process of Referee and Judges;

 The development of a computerized draw system for appointing Referees and Judges to a

bout;

 The appointment of an observer position into the Field of Play;

 The increased number and quality of courses offered for training Referees and Judges;

 The improvement of AIBA’s database so that Referees and Judges can be evaluated over time

as opposed to event by event.

Noteworthy, is the establishment of a protest system for Coaches and Athletes which has been

approved, tested and is set to be implemented in 2019 at the AIBA Men’s World Championships.

Tom Virgets, AIBA Executive Director, said: "AIBA is committed to safe-guarding the integrity of

boxing and its competitions on all levels. Collaborating with an independent audit team is just one of

the ways we are working hard to ensure we keep our sport clean and our competitions honest. Like

any other International Sport Federation, AIBA will continuously seek to improve its refereeing and

judging and will remain ever vigilant to the fact that we serve our athletes in the first place."

While the new systems have been successfully implemented and approved by the independent

organisation PwC and the IOC, AIBA is dedicated to continuously investing in new technologies to

further improve its refereeing and judging processes in the lead up to Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games and

beyond.

About AIBA

The International Boxing Association (AIBA) is the worldwide governing body for the sport of boxing

in all its form with a total of 203 Member Federations. AIBA works on behalf of all levels of boxing,

women and me, to reinvigorate the sport’s grass roots, develop youth and elite boxing and create new

opportunities for semi-pro and pro-boxers. AIBA’s vision for boxing also embraces and adheres to the

spirit and values of the Olympic Movement. With these values, AIBA ensures the highest levels of

transparent standards including for all global competitions, rankings, judging and boxers’

remuneration. AIBA is headquartered in the "Olympic Capital" Lausanne, Switzerland.

Contact:

Tom Virgets, AIBA Executive Director: tom.virgets@aiba.org

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