The International Olympic Committee (IOC) put planning for the Tokyo 2020 boxing tournament on hold on Friday in a move that could see the governing body AIBA frozen out of the Games over a governance dispute.
The IOC said in a statement it had also launched an investigation into the International Boxing Association after AIBA submitted a progress report focusing on governance, financial management and sporting integrity.
It referred to that enquiry as "the initiation of a procedure which can lead to the withdrawal of recognition for AIBA" but said it still hoped boxing would be part of the program.
"The IOC Executive Board makes all efforts to protect the athletes and ensure that a boxing tournament can take place at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 regardless of these measures," the statement read.
The IOC's Executive Board said planning for the Olympic boxing tournament had been frozen, with immediate effect, and contact suspended between AIBA and the Tokyo 2020 Organising Committee.
"This will also include the freezing of any ticket sales for the boxing competitions or any approval or implementation of the qualification system," the IOC's Sports Director Kit McConnell said in Tokyo on Friday.
No deadline was set for further action but any decision to withdraw recognition from an international federation would have to be made at an IOC session. The next one is scheduled for June 2019.
McConnell said AIBA had been given adequate time to address the IOC's concerns.
"These questions have been on the table throughout the whole of 2018 and tomorrow is December."
AIBA has been in turmoil for years and the IOC has warned the Swiss-based body to sort out its finances and governance, as well as anti-doping issues, or risk missing out on Tokyo.
In a statement issued later on Friday, AIBA said it had made "great strides in a short period of time".
The body's president, Gafur Rahimov, said he too had been concerned about its finances earlier in the year.
"However, I can assure our Olympic friends that after making significant cuts to our spending, securing new sponsors, securing trusted host cities for our major events and negotiating with our past partners, I am very proud to say that AIBA has achieved financial stability but that it had now attainted financial stability," he said.
The IOC executive board said AIBA had made progress but points of "significant concern" remained.
Rahimov was one of two Olympic officials barred by the Australian government from attending the 2000 Sydney Games for security reasons.
In the AIBA statement, Rahimov downplayed concerns about his personal situation.
"I can assure the IOC that the situation with US authorities based on false allegations by the previous regime of my country is being addressed and that my legal team is working hard to correct this," he said.
Despite its concerns, the IOC said it remained determined to feature boxing at Tokyo 2020.
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