Sports Bulletin

Olympic Gold medalist, British Amir Khan becomes chairman of PPBB, father presidentAbdul Jabbar FaisalISLAMABAD: Olympic Gold medalist British boxer Amir Khan became the chairman of Pakistan Professional Boxing Body (PPBB), while his father Shajaad Khan and uncle Tahir Khan would act as president and secretary, respectively, of the organization.While unfolding the details of PPBB, Amir Khan said in a press conference here at the National Press Club (NPC) on Thursday. “Our basic aim is to provide maximum opportunities to budding boxers and to train technical officials, which could meet the international standard. We will promote professional boxing in the country, and provide full assistance to talented fighters. PPBB will also introduce a transparent, safe, and professionally managed boxing system in line with global standards. The professional boxing event is expected to be held on February 10 next year, “he revealed.Speaking on the occasion, Amir Khan highlighted the shortage of boxing academies and modern training facilities in Pakistan, saying that the country, particularly areas such as Lyari in Karachi, has immense boxing talent but lacks the necessary infrastructure to develop young fighters. He urged the government to support the establishment of boxing academies by providing unused sports complexes and available government land. “Many talented Pakistani boxers are compelled to leave the country or represent other nations because of financial difficulties and the high costs associated with international competitions, “he lamented.“Pakistani boxers are recognised for their talent in the United Kingdom and other Western countries, but the country still lacks an effective professional boxing structure capable of taking local athletes to the international level. In the past, controversial decisions, poor management, and a lack of transparency had discouraged several promising fighters. PPBB is established through private-sector efforts and will not depend on government funding or public resources. We will provide legal representatives, experienced referees, judges, and technical experts to ensure that competitions are conducted in accordance with international rules and regulations, “he replied a question.He further said that PPBB would develop links and pursue affiliations with leading international boxing organisations, including the World Boxing Council (WBC), World Boxing Association (WBA), International Boxing Federation (IBF), World Boxing Organization (WBO), and Commonwealth Boxing, aiming to provide Pakistani fighters opportunities to compete for international titles.He emphasised that athletes' health and safety would remain the board's top priority. Mandatory medical examinations, fitness assessments and other necessary health checks would be introduced before competitions. Strict measures would also be taken to prevent unauthorised individuals from entering the ring and to ensure that boxers with significantly different experience levels and professional records are not unfairly matched.On this occasion, President PPBB Shajjad Khan said that the development of professional boxing in Pakistan would begin with improving the technical skills and qualifications of officials. National and international-standard training courses would be organised for referees and judges, while their performance and expertise would be regularly assessed. Only qualified officials would be assigned responsibilities during competitions to ensure fair and transparent decisions. He added that the board would study successful boxing commission models from the United Kingdom and other developed countries to introduce a safe and well-organised professional boxing structure in Pakistan.General Secretary Tahir Khan said that the board's primary objective was to provide international recognition to Pakistani boxers, referees and judges. He noted that Pakistani boxing officials currently lacked the international recognition necessary for the sport's development. “Proper records of registered fighters and officials would be maintained, while cooperation with international boxing organisations would help them gain access to overseas competitions and world-level titles. The body also aims to create opportunities for Pakistani referees and judges to officiate at Asian and international boxing events.Director Legal Affairs Sultan Qamar Afzal said:  “A strong legal and regulatory framework is essential for the future of professional boxing in Pakistan. The body will focus on legal requirements, regulations and the protection of athletes' rights to establish an environment in which fighters could compete with confidence. Talent alone is not enough to succeed in professional boxing, stressing the importance of consistent training, financial support, opportunities and international exposure. The basic objective is to provide athletes with a proper platform to realise their potential. The board is also taking steps to ensure that competition results and professional records of boxers are maintained on recognised international platforms, preventing unauthorised changes and allowing their performances to be verified globally”.

Sports Report Dubai (UAE): Professional boxer Karan Gill was declared winner on 14th December 2022 shortly after giving Keisham Singh a tough fight in six consecutive rounds, with scores provided by Judges Vikramjeet Singh (57-56), Kavita Bhanwala (58-55), and Anshul Dagar (57-56) indicating the fighter's victory in the Super Bantamweight Division. However, post declaration there was an effort to change the record. The Indian Boxing Council and Promoter Anirban Roy (United Professional Boxing) in a written email had declared a no-contest result for the pro boxer after a three-member Jury was tasked with conducting a video review of Karan Gill's victory over Keisham Luckyson Singh, thereby incorrectly removing all boxing records and stripping away the winning title from the fighter. Karan Gill and his manager brought the matter to the Indian Boxing Council's attention, requesting that a proper review be conducted after contesting a petition through proper channels. In contrast, the IBC (Indian Boxing Council) and the United Professional Boxing Promoter provided a written document stating that the referee's warning to boxer Keisham Luckyson in round 4 was incorrect. According to the IBC letter, Boxer Karan Gill was responsible for holding his opponent's neck along with repeatedly hitting his head multiple times in the same round, causing severe injury. As per the referee, Karan Gill should have been warned for "holding" and "hitting the back of the head" in the fourth round. That is when the Federation decided to remove Karan Gill's records without further complaint. Clarifying about the same Karan Gill’s manager, Jagtar Singh shares, “A boxing expert analyzed the fourth-round video for us. According to the expert, Karan Gill could not have received any warning about his punches based on the video. The incorrect arm was used by our opponent, Keisham Luckyson Singh, who was brought in by Mr. Anirban Roy, the Promoter of United Professional Boxing. During the first three rounds, Keisham was warned not to take a lower stance. After each round, I believe the referee told him the same thing, but he ignored it. And now the federation is attempting to hide what it did with other fighters who competed in different categories. Our boxer fought admirably against the promoter's fighter. But the promoter doesn’t want to create a negative image for his fighter which is why IBC has his full committed support. “We also had another fighter, Simranjeet Singh, who out of the blue got his fight scheduled with one of promoter’s fighters Boxer Manish without asking for it. Although there was another fight scheduled for Manish, but without asking if Siranjeet had participated, they updated our fighter’s score card as a loss round. Thankfully they deleted the record then after clarifying with them. What if we haven’t noticed “, questions Jagtar Singh Also not stopping there Karan Gill’s manager further clarifies,” The Federation and the promoter of United Professional Boxing does has a history of misplacing records and erasing stats of extremely talented fighters. Akashdeep Singh, another talented boxer, had a fight scheduled with a candidate of the promoter’s organized by IBC but ended up fighting with an individual of another category. Though,  our fighters did win this category but again his records were deleted from the charts.” In the end Jagtar Singh said: “We sincerely hope that the Federation and the promoter will accept their trial of errors and rectify all stats with careful judgement and precision especially for Karan Gill. For if there are good fighters, they will never be able to compete or participate in future events if there is always such confusion regarding rectifying one’s results.”

Sports Bulletin Report BANGKOK: Pakistan’s Mohammad Shoaib defeated Hendrik Barongsay of Indonesia to seal the Asian Boxing Federation (ABF) lightweight championship belt. Promising pugilist Mohammad Shoaib produced a masterclass to overcome Hendrik Barongsay of Indonesia in Bangkok, Thailand on Wednesday night. The 25-year-old Quetta-born boxer, who has now won all his four pro fights he featured so far, prevailed over his seasoned opponent in the 10th round with the official scorecard after the fight reading 117-57 for him. Known as the “Coolest Boy”, Shoaib had outwitted Thai boxer Sornram Sopakul in Bangkok in September this year to qualify for fighting for the Asian title. Mohammad Shoaib said: “I knew my opponent was a seasoned boxer but I believed in myself. I knew I could beat him. I wanted to make it a spectacular match for the audience at the event, as well as my fans back home. My opponent lost the way as I targeted to outsmart him in the early rounds. My dream is to raise the green flag high in the world. I’m thankful to the nation for supporting me and praying for my success.”

Sports Bulletin Report NEW DELHI: Pro boxer Sandeep Singh Bhatti has been chosen to box for Tyson Fury's undercard team. With the backing of world athlete promoters Top Rank (the boxing promotional company founded by Jabir Herbert Mohammad and Bob Arum) and Frank Warren (the founder of Queensbury Promotions), Sandeep Singh Bhatti will compete against British professional boxer Issac Lowe on December 3, 2022. Sandeep Singh Bhatti, who was recently signed by the sports management company, is well-known for his 8-round WBC Title victory over Afghan boxer Aimal Sediqzada. After competing in a number of Indian professional boxing tournaments, he will be now fighting under Tyson Fury's card, with the opportunity to become the next undisputed boxing champion. Neeraj Goyat, Owner VN Promotions said: “Sandeep is more of a fighter than a boxer. He has not only raised the bar for professional boxing in India, but his selection in the upcoming undercard fight will undoubtedly establish him as a new fan favorite in the combat sporting community.” “Sandeep is one of our top professional boxing talents we have in India at the moment. Top Rank and Frank Warren's assistance has allowed him to compete against international boxing champions such as Issac Lowe who is now regarded as one of the best professional boxers in the world. Sandeep Singh Bhatti said: “In my career, facing off against such a professional fighter is a huge step forward. I'd like to thank particularly Neeraj Goyat my manager for pulling this one off and Top Rank India and Frank Warren, for allowing my talent to compete in an international league fight so early in my career. Bob Arum, Founder and CEO of Top Rank said: "Professional Boxing has found a huge fanbase here in India; I am quite surprised by the response and adoration Indian fans have for combat sports, as well as how it engages even non-sports fans. Our goal has always been to support athletes like Sandeep and to open doors for pro boxing to grow beyond national boundaries. We want professional boxing to have a bigger and stronger commercial viability globally, similar to cricket and football, and we hope to inspire it."

Sports Bulletin Report LAHORE: Pakistan’s kickboxing athletes have won six gold medals in the Iran International Kickboxing Championship that was taken place at Sports Gymnasium Mazandaran, Iran. According to the details, teams from Pakistan, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan participated in the Iran International Kickboxing Championship, as the Green Shirts snatched 6 gold and 2 silver medals and Pakistan became the winner of the Iran International Kickboxing Championship. Asad Ali and Shahshah Naqi played in a style and attacked their opponents by attacking them and won the gold medals for Pakistan. Apart from them, four Pakistani players won gold medals, Ahmad Arshad won the silver medal by performing brilliantly in the event. Mazandaran Kickboxing Association Iran Secretary Master Farshad Sher Aghan distributed medals and certificates to the players, besides Mubarak Ali Shah. The officials of the teams of Afghanistan, Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan, including Nadeem Ali Janjua, also distributed medals and certificates to the players.

Sports Bulletin Report ISLAMABAD:-In the interest of the athletes and the boxing community, the Executive Board (EB) of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has decided that the boxing qualifying events and competitions at the  Olympic Games Paris 2024  will not be run under the authority of the International Boxing Association (IBA). The decision is centred on the athletes and the need to provide certainty on the Olympic competitions and qualifications leading to Paris 2024. It follows the continuing and very concerning issues of the IBA, such as its governance and its refereeing and judging system. The IOC administration will finalise on an exceptional basis alternative models for the organisation of these boxing competitions, working closely with the Paris 2024 Organising Committee and athletes’ representatives. The outcomes of these discussions and suggested recommendations will then be presented to the IOC EB in due course. Whether or not boxing will be included on the sports programme of the Olympic Games Los Angeles 2028 will be discussed at a later stage. Continuing concerns: The various IOC concerns around the governance of the IBA, including the refereeing and judging process and its financial dependency on the state-owned company Gazprom, are still ongoing. The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) announced on 14 June 2022 that the decision of the IBA Interim Nominations Unit, which had deemed the presidential candidate Boris van der Vorst and three other electoral candidates ineligible for election the day prior to the scheduled IBA elections, had been overturned. The CAS arbitrator accepted the request that they be reinstated as eligible candidates. Furthermore, the CAS stated that Umar Kremlev had committed the same rule violation yet had been admitted to the election as the sole candidate. With regard to the planned IBA qualification pathway to Paris 2024, the IOC EB noted that no host-city agreements had been signed for the qualification competitions and that there was an insufficient number of certified referees and judges to deliver the planned events. Background information: Following an investigation and report by an IOC Inquiry Committee in 2019, recognition of the International Boxing Association (at that time still called AIBA) was suspended by the IOC. This suspension is still in force today. Following the suspension, the IOC created a special Task Force with the remit to deliver the qualification events for the boxing tournament at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020. Led by IOC Member and President of the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) Morinari Watanabe, the Boxing Task Force delivered a clear, fair and transparent pathway for boxers to qualify for the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 and ensured a fair and just competition, both on the road to Tokyo and at the Games.