Intarat tipped to succeed his wife Boossaba as Tawa president
>> Intarat Yodbangtoey is expected to be elected president of the Thai Amateur Weightlifting Association today.
Former Tawa boss Intarat and ex-Tawa secretary-general Prachya Keeratinan are the only two candidates in today’s polls at a Bangkok hotel.
The winner will succeed Boossaba Yodbangtoey who, along with the entire Tawa executive board, resigned in January to “shoulder responsibility” for doping allegations.
Maj Gen Intarat is seen as hot favourite to win today’s election.
Over the years, Intarat and his wife Boossaba have taken turns to lead Tawa.
Intarat is currently the first vice president of the International Weightlifting Federation and also a Tawa adviser.
Tawa has been suspended indefinitely from taking part in international tournaments after a number of its athletes tested positive at the 2018 world championships.
Earlier this year, German broadcaster ARD aired a documentary about alleged corruption and doping cover-ups in the sport.
The programme also filmed Thailand’s 2012 Olympic bronze medallist Rattikan (now Siripuch) Gulnoi admitting to using steroids when she was 18 years old.
Following her resignation, Boossaba said that Siripuch was filmed by a hidden camera and that she only wanted to share her own thoughts by innocently talking about doping abuse in Thai weightlifting.
“She was cheated with fake status of the journalist who neither identified his real name nor showed his real profession,” she said.
Some critics said if Intarat is voted Tawa president today, it could lead to more problems rather than solving them.
“What is the relation between Intarat and Boossaba?” asked a critic.
Weightlifting is Thailand’s most successful sport at the Olympics with five gold medals.