‘Cheated’ boxer has a pop at Putin
NARROWLY beaten by a Russian in a controversial bout, Irish boxer Michael Conlan cried foul – and launched a foulmouthed outburst on live TV.
But not just content with accusing the judges of being paid off, he took his gripe right to the very top – and accused Vladimir Putin of rigging the contest.
He took aim at the Amateur International Boxing Association (AIBA) on Twitter after the match, accusing them of ‘cheating’ and ‘robbing’ him of his dreams.
The boxer then turned his attentions to the Kremlin, writing on Twitter: ‘Hey Vlad, How much did they charge you bro?’
The 24-year-old world champion has now vowed never to fight for another competition organised by AIBA. After sticking his middle finger up at the judges panel, Conlan claimed that judges had been paid by Russian authorities to ensure that his opponent Vladimir Nikitin won the quarter-final match.
Speaking to television channel RTE, he said: ‘AIBA are cheats. They’re f ****** cheats… I don’t f ****** care that this is on TV.’
Bantamweight Conlan, from Belfast, believed he had been the rightful victor and had ‘annihilated’ his opponent – but lost out after judges ruled Nikitin had outperformed him. Conlan, who took bronze in London 2012, told of how he had hoped to secure a gold medal at Rio and said he had not even been ‘out of breath’ in the first round against his competitor.
After the match, which he lost following a unanimous decision from judges, Conlan said: ‘Obviously Russia can’t dope this time so they are obviously paying the judges a lot more. I will never box an AIBA competition again. Corruption runs deep... I just think they are rotten to the core.’
His comments came in the wake of a decision by the International Olympic Committee not to ban Russian athletes from the Games – despite a report revealing a statesponsoring doping programme between 2011 and 2015.
Following Conlan’s outburst, the head of the Russian delegation, Igor Kazikov, hit back and called for a ‘dignified’ defeat.
He added: ‘Why is there this mistrust all the time?’ An AIBA spokesman added: ‘These statements are groundless but he’s free to have his opinion.’