The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) ruled on a dispute involving Caner Doganeli, the former Secretary General of the International Boxing Association (AIBA), and the Turkish Boxing Federation against AIBA. The case centered on allegations of financial irregularities during Doganeli's tenure from 2002 to 2006, as revealed by an audit conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC). The audit identified accounting and financial mismanagement, prompting AIBA's executive committee to refer the matter to its Ethics Commission. In February 2007, Doganeli was provisionally suspended, and after reviewing his submissions, the Ethics Commission recommended his permanent removal to restore AIBA's credibility. The executive committee acted on this recommendation, removing Doganeli in June 2007.
Doganeli and the Turkish Boxing Federation appealed the decision to CAS, challenging the executive committee's authority to remove him and contesting AIBA's subsequent attempt to bar him from representing the Turkish federation at AIBA events. CAS affirmed its jurisdiction over the dispute, dismissing AIBA's initial objections. The panel, applying Swiss law due to AIBA's headquarters in Switzerland, examined whether the executive committee had the authority to remove an elected member. While AIBA's Articles of Association did not explicitly address this, the panel concluded that the executive committee could act in emergencies, provided the decision was later ratified by the Congress. The panel found the removal justified given the urgency of addressing the financial mismanagement and governance failures highlighted by the PWC audit and Ethics Commission report.
CAS also ruled that AIBA could not prevent the Turkish Boxing Federation from selecting Doganeli or any other delegate as its representative at AIBA events, as the federation retained autonomy in choosing its representatives under AIBA's rules. The panel emphasized that the removal of an individual from an AIBA position did not automatically disqualify them from representing their national federation.
Ultimately, CAS dismissed Doganeli's appeal, upholding AIBA's decision to remove him pending Congressional approval and affirming the Turkish federation's right to choose its representatives. The ruling reinforced the authority of sports federations to take emergency actions in cases of misconduct while ensuring procedural fairness and respecting the autonomy of member federations. The case underscored CAS's role in balancing organizational governance with individual rights within international sports.