IABA rift overshadows Bernard Dunne appointment

As the Irish Athletic Boxing Association (IABA) begins its recovery from a disastrous Olympic Games last year, a scathing Rio review and begins to implement a strategic plan, a serious split has developed at board level in the organisation.

The dispute is between the board of directors and the association’s elected officials, who make up the Boxing Council of the IABA and run Irish boxing on a day-to-day basis.

Members of the council also serve on the board of directors. However, it is believed that five members of the board of directors held a meeting on March 27th in the National Stadium at which Waterford boxing official David O’Brien was elected as the new ‘chairman’.

Joe Christle is listed as the IABA's current chairman. However, the alternative body believe they had the authority to carry out the election, which Christle and IABA chief executive Fergal Carruth reject.

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"We have already engaged intervention," said Christle on Thursday at the confirmation of Bernard Dunne as the new High Performance Director in boxing.

"Senan Turnbull of the Carmichael Foundation has been engaged to go through a process of gathering all the people, from all parties within the boxing family and coming up with recommendations."

Both Christle and Carruth have said that the Companies Registration Office (CRO) was the correct body to see who the directors are in the IABA. However, they did not deny that there is a significant difference of opinion on the issue at board level.

“In regard to the query . . . the board of directors and a second chairman. First of all, there are rules and regulations in and around company law and they have to be followed,” explained Christle.

“If you want to know who is on the board of directors you look it up on the CRO and if there is somebody there who is purporting to be a chairman his name would be on the board of directors in the CRO. That is not the case.

“The new chairman [O’Brien] is no longer a member of the board of directors. His term of office came to an end.

“There was a meeting. I believe that they did meet on the particular day, two days before a governance workshop I believe. In advance of that they wrote to the secretary who contacted all the directors to see if they could attend that particular day.

“They couldn’t attend but they were attending on the Wednesday [at another meeting]. David O’Brien was contacted and told if he had any concerns he could voice them on the Wednesday to his former colleagues on the board.”

Dunne, who beat former Irish rugby coach Eddie O’Sullivan to the high performance job, which he will take up with immediate effect, said he had no idea that there was a dispute going on in the organisation.

“No, it is the first I heard,” said Dunne when he was asked about how it may affect his position. “Until I actually know what’s going on, it is going to be hard for me to comment on that.”

Carruth was strongly of the opinion that Christle was the chairman of the organisation despite any claims emanating from the March 28th meeting.

“There is a chairman of the organisation,” said Carruth. “He is here today. It is Joe Christle.”

Carruth added that the former professional world champion and 13-time amateur national title holder Dunne will work along side the high performance coaching team lead by head coach Zaur Antia with a view of Ireland being among the top three countries in terms of numbers competing at the Tokyo Olympic Games in 2020.

“The Rio games were both difficult and disappointing for boxing,” said Carruth. “But we are delighted that with this appointment. We are confident that Bernard and the rest of the high performance team are now well placed to maximise the conveyor belt of talent.”