Serbia Bars Kosovo Team From Competing in Boxing Championship

A national boxing team from Kosovo spent the weekend travelling from Kosovo to the Serbian border three times for a planned journey to the Men's World Boxing Championships in Belgrade before finally returning home after Serbia refused to let them enter the country.

The championship, taking place from October 24 to November 6, gathers more than 500 athletes from over 88 countries to compete in 13 weight categories.

The Kosovo Boxing Federation has been a full member of the International Boxing Association AIBA since November 2014 one month before its Olympic Committee became a member of the International Olympic Committee.

On Saturday, AIBA said the Kosovo team was expected to attend the Championship and suggested that the Kosovo delegation "will be treated no differently than the delegation of any other AIBA member".

"AIBA aims to provide a welcoming home for every boxer, and the world of boxing has no borders. We believe that all athletes must receive a fair chance to compete and demonstrate their best abilities in the ring. Sport is intended to unite people and should be free of national politics," AIBA said, adding that it is in contact with the event host, the Serbian Boxing Federation, in an attempt to remedy the situation.

But the International Olympic Committee, IOC, blamed AIBA for not being able to secure the right of Kosovo athletes to participate in a tournament in Belgrade.

"It appears that AIBA has not applied the necessary due diligence before allocating this tournament to Belgrade, despite the fact that the IOC has repeatedly advised the international federations of the necessity of such due diligence," Reuters quoted an IOC spokesperson as saying.

Besim Brahimi, selector of the Kosovo national team,...