Contradictory statements from the same office at Bangladesh Amateur Boxing Federation did not clear why Zinnat Ferdous and other Bangladesh boxers failed to register for the Paris World Qualifying Tournament in Bangkok, which was the last qualification event for the 2024 Olympic Games boxing.
Among the three qualification events for boxing at the Paris Olympics, Bangladesh boxers including Zinnat missed out on two vital competitions held this year due to federation’s fiasco.
The first one was the 2023 Asian Games which took place in Hangzhou, China from September 23 to October 8.
It is the continent’s biggest multi-sports event and to qualify from this meet for a Bangladeshi boxer is the toughest job of all, something no athlete from the country ever achieved before.
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Those who could not book Olympic ticket from the Asiad, had a second chance in the 1st World Qualification Tournament in Busto Arzizio, Italy from February 29 to March 12, 2024, but none of the Bangladeshi boxers participated in this event, leaving one last shot for them in the Bangkok meet.
For those who missed the first two qualification events, the 2nd World Qualification Tournament in Thailand was up for grabs.
It was held from May 23-June 3, 2024.
Four Bangladeshi boxers - Salim Hossain, Abu Talha, Hossain Ali and Zinnat – were initially enlisted for the event but none eventually made it.
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A source at the BABF informed Dhaka Tribune that the federation missed a deadline to submit registration details due to Eid ul-Fitr break.
The source said the federation originally met the deadline but they were asked by the tournament committee to send the documents again to a separate email address during the government holidays whose deadline could not be met.
The Eid ul-Fitr after Ramadan this year was on April 11.
The government holidays for this occasion were from April 9-13.
April 14 was also a government holiday as it was the first day of the Bangla New Year.
The deadline for tournament registration was on April 15 at 9pm BST but the federation squandered it.
Also according to another report, Bangladeshi boxers’, including Zinnat’s, participation was cancelled by the host organizing committee for not receiving the signed and stamped registrations in due time.
The top officials of BABF tried their best to hide this failure.
They came up with different explanations on why the national boxers, including Zinnat, failed to participate in the vital event.
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Mazharul Islam Tuhin, the general secretary of BABF, told Dhaka Tribune that it was because of “ranking” and “performance” of Zinnat and other Bangladesh boxers that they got disqualified from the Paris World Qualifying Tournament.
He added: “They didn’t cover the slot. They missed the serial for rankings.”
Md. Motaleb, the joint-secretary of the federation, also echoed the same tone but when asked if the reason was based on any official declaration, there was only mere hesitation but no specific answer.
While the qualification chances ended in despair, there was Universality Places, also known as wildcard, for those who did not qualify directly for the Paris Olympics, but Zinnat was also deprived from this option.