Boxing to Be Out of World Combat Sports Games

Boxing announced its retirement from the competitive program of the World Combat Sports Games through disputes between organizers and the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

The International Boxing Association (AIBA) has also suspended boxing's membership of Sport Accord (General Association of International Sports Federations), which organizes events like those games. Sport Accord president, the Romanian Marius Vizer, launched a strong attack to the IOC President, the German Thomas Bach, last month.

Boxing is a noble art and a traditional Olympic sport, so we feel that its participation in the World Combat Sports Games challenges this identity among the fans of the sport, said AIBA president , Taiwan's Wu Ching-Kuo.

"We regret having to suspend our membership from Sport Accord right away. AIBA's move is based on Olympic values and those values of integrity and respect are the ones we must protect now and in the future," he added.

In April, during the celebration of the annual convention of Sport Accord, rivalry between Vizer and Bach became public when Vizer asked for more power to the federations within the IOC.

Vizer blamed the organization system of the IOC, and called its officials "Cardinals" and "Popes" of sports. He also added that they tried to block his attempts to organize multi-sport events.

Boxing is the latest of several sports, including athletics, leaving Sport Accord because of this dispute.

AIBA took part in Beijing in 2010 and St. Petersburg in 2013 games.

The next World Combat Sports Games, which also included disciplines such as fencing, judo, wrestling and weightlifting will be held in Lima in 2017.

2015 WTF World Taekwondo Championships

The Russian city of Chelyabinsk is ready for the 2015 World Taekwondo Federation Championships, scheduled for May 12-18, with the participation of five Cuban athletes.

The Cuban team includes two women Yamicel Núñez and Yania Aguirre and three men Rafael Alba (87kg), Robelis Despaigne (+87kg) and José Ángel Cobas (74kg).

A total of 875 athletes from 136 countries have submitted their entry forms for the biennial championships, which is the 22nd edition of its kind for men and 15th for women.

The seven-day event, which will take place at the Traktor Arena in Chelyabinsk, will feature eight male and eight female weight categories.

A Daedo protector and scoring system (PSS) will be used at the Championships. Electronic PSS head protectors and also Octagon-shaped mats will be used at the Chelyabinsk championships for the first time in the history of the WTF Championships. To ensure fair judging, an instant video replay system will be also introduced.