Dear Members,

As of the Monday 07^th June 2021 IABA affiliated clubs in the Republic of Ireland (ROI) who have successfully completed the required Covid-19 ‘Protect Yourself at all Times’ protocols/procedures and have been issued with their permission letter, can return to indoor individual non-contact training.

Sport Ireland’s Expert Group recommends the adoption of the ‘pod of one’ concept. This concept can be defined as ‘Individual, physically distanced, non-contact activity, completed in a pre-defined area, within a controlled environment and without the sharing of equipment’.

In preparation for this date the IABA team in consultation with medical experts and various stakeholders have updated the Protect Yourself at All Times: Safe Return to Training Membership pack to help assist clubs wishing to reopen. To access these documents please visit https://iaba.ie/covid-19-guidance/.

All clubs wishing to reopen MUST complete and return the club declaration document to info@iaba.ie. Once the completed document verifying that the club has taken all relevant steps has been received via email, the club will in turn receive a confirmation email from IABA head office confirming that they can reopen.

*PLEASE NOTE YOU MUST BE IN RECEIPT OF YOUR PERMISSION TO REOPEN LETTER FROM THE IABA MEDICAL COMMISSIONER BEFORE REOPENING YOUR CLUB

Dear Members,

Please be advised, Development Squad Training which was scheduled to take place on Saturday 12^th June, has now been cancelled.

Apologies for any inconvenience caused.

Please click here for broadcasting schedule for Olympic qualifiers from Paris.

Team Ireland are en route to Paris this afternoon ahead of the opening bell for the European Olympic qualifiers in the French capital on Friday.

The tournament is a continuation of the London qualifiers which were cancelled after three days of competition in March 2020 because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Brendan Irvine qualified in London and will meet Spain’s Gabriel Escobar for at least bronze in Paris this weekend.

Meanwhile, boxers that require a top six finish to qualify for next month’s Olympics will get two shots at qualification if they reach the quarter-finals and lose as the will go into a box-off to decide the top six in their respective weight classes.

George Bates is one win away for qualification in Paris as he requires a top eight finish.

The draw for the Paris tournament will be published shortly along with the start times and dates.

Irish squad

52kg Brendan Irvine (St Paul’s, Antrim) Cpt (Top 8) (qualified)

63kg George Bates (St Mary’s, Dublin) (Top 8)

69kg Aidan Walsh (Monkstown, Antrim) (Top 6)

81kg Emmet Brennan (Dublin Docklands) (Top 6)

91kg Kiril Afanasev (Smithfield, Dublin) (Top 4)

91+kg Gytis Lisinskas (Celtic Eagles) Galway) (Top 4)

Female

57kg Michaela Walsh (Monkstown, Antrim) (Top 6)

60kg Kellie Harrington (St Mary’s, Dublin) (Top 6)

75kg Aoife O’Rourke (Castlerea, Roscommon) (Top 4)

The introduction of the AIBA Financial Support Program

The new Financial Support Program and the regulations were approved by the AIBA Board of Directors on their meeting which was held on 22 March and came into force on the 21st of April. The Financial Support Program shall be granted starting on the 1st of July 2021 and may be granted until 30 June in 2022.

A new grant program was launched by the International Boxing Association and all of the National Federations and the Confederations can apply to attend and get benefits and financial stability from the new FSP project.

Several development projects can be funded each year and reports and monitoring are important during the FSP program. The amount which is available for the Confederations is 500,000 USD per year while 20,000 USD for the affiliated National Federations.

The Financial Support Program plans to develop, support and strengthen boxing in all areas including grassroots programs, management, government and administration systems to be more independent, efficient and transparent in the future.

Those are eligible for the Grant Program which have a strategic plan or project approved by the AIBA FSP Office. The applicants have to demonstrate their financial programs for their boxing development and/or management activities. The applicants have to be in full compliance with all of their obligations under the Membership Policy.

The National Federations or Confederations must have their own constitution, statutes, and regulations which are compliant with the Constitution and the Membership Policy. The applicants have to employ a General Secretary or another official who is responsible for monitoring the implementation of the Financial Support Program.

A National Federation or a Confederation that plans to benefit from the Financial Support Program must submit a written application on the prescribed form. The purposes of the funding include the following areas: competitions, developments, “Need Based” projects, administration and communication.