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‘They’re fu*king cheats’ AIBA reply to Michael Conlon’s post-fight rant

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There was absolutely no denying the raw emotion evident in Michael Conlan's post fight interview yesterday.

The 24-year-old boxer from Belfast didn't censor himself when giving his assessment of his match with Russian counterpart, Vladimir Nikitin.

With Nikitin crowned the winner despite public opinion to the contrary, the Irish boxer slammed the Amateur International Boxing Association claiming it was wholly corrupt.

"AIBA are cheats. They’re fu*king cheats. Sorry about that, but that’s me. I don’t give a fu*k, I’m cursing on TV," he ranted moments after losing out on his chance at Olympic gold.

"My dream’s been shattered, but you know what? I’ve got a big career ahead of me and these, they’re known for being cheats," he reasoned. 

Michael went on to question the validity of the judging system, insisting: "Amateur boxing stinks from the core right to the top. Russia can’t dope this time so they are obviously paying the judges a lot more."

The boxer, who took home bronze after the London Olympics in 2012, expressed disbelief over the assessment of his performance.

After explaining that he was more than confident following the first round: he added: "I put it on him more and more. I thought I annihilated him in the second-round. The third was closer, but even that I thought I did enough to win."

Clearly emotional, Michael made his feelings for the Olympics clear, saying: "I’ll never box in this competition again. If people watch this Olympic Games and they see some of the decisions…I think boxing is dead."

Eager to highlight the discrepancy between the fight and the result, he said: "The Russian afterwards, he didn’t believe he won. I didn’t believe he won. The referee didn’t believe he won. I couldn’t think his corner believed he won. Then he reacted as if he’d won a gold medal."

Despite public outrage, AIBA has denied Conlan’s accusations and extended their condolences following the judges' decision.

"AIBA is striving for a fair, level playing field. The idea is not to benefit one country towards another. We represent 200 national federations," they said.

"Michael is a current world champion and he came here with high expectations,” said an AIBA spokesman. “His disappointment is massive, we can all understand that. It’s his personal judgement."
 

As a gesture of goodwill, Boyle Sports have agreed to pay out on bets placed on the fight.

Take a look at Michael's interview in full.

 

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