The Ghana Boxing Federation (GBF) is taking a cautious approach following the Court of Arbitration for Sport’s (CAS) dismissal of the International Boxing Association’s (IBA) appeal against the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) decision to withdraw the association’s recognition.
Speaking to asaaseradio.com, Charles Sergius Jojo Ephson, communication director for the GBF said, “We in Ghana are not an independent body. We listen to our mother ministry, which is the Ministry of Youth and Sports, through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, because when it happens that way, it becomes a foreign policy issue where the country aligns itself; that’s where we as a body will align ourselves.”
Ephson added, “We, as a country, will only gravitate towards what will help in the development of boxing.”
He likened the situation to navigating personal relationships, prioritising growth over permanence. “We are not looking at our personal interests; we are looking at the national interests,” he stressed.
“So whatever happens and the government of the day decides where we should gravitate ourselves, that’s where we go.”
The CAS decision casts a shadow over boxing’s inclusion in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, potentially removing the sport from the programme for the first time since 1904.
However, the IOC offered a glimmer of hope in a statement, highlighting the need for “a recognised and reliable International Federation as a partner.” The onus now falls on National Boxing Federations and National Olympic Committees (NOCs) to establish a federation that adheres to the IOC’s recognition criteria.
“The establishment of such a federation, which respects the IOC conditions for recognition, is now in the hands of the National Boxing Federations and their National Olympic Committees (NOCs),” the IOC statement read.
–ASAASE RADIO
