Ajay Singh, President of the Boxing Federation of India, is now vice-president of the IBA ©Getty Images

Ajay Singh, President of the Boxing Federation of India (BFI), has been appointed as a vice-president of the International Boxing Association (IBA).

Singh was confirmed in the role during an IBA Board of Directors meeting, held following the Women's World Championships which concluded in New Delhi on Sunday (March 26).

The official is also chairman and managing director of SpiceJet, India's second-largest airline by fleet size, and an associate vice-president of the Indian Olympic Association.

He becomes the third IBA vice-president on a term until 2026, joining Volodymyr Prodyvus of Ukraine and Abdulmutalim Abakarov of Serbia.

Singh said he will do his best to resolve the current conflict between the IBA and the International Olympic Committee (IOC), with the boxing body currently stripped of the rights to organise the sport at the Olympic Games.

"It's in everybody's interest that the issues between the IOC and IBA are resolved at the earliest," he said to the Times of India.

"For that, it's important there's a dialogue between the two bodies and to the extent that India can assist in that dialogue we will definitely do our best."

The IOC is set to manage boxing at Paris 2024 for the second consecutive Games due to ongoing concerns with the IBA's governance under Russian President Umar Kremlev.

The sport's Olympic status for Los Angeles 2028 is teetering on the brink going into an IOC Executive Board meeting which starts today.

Ajay Singh, President of the Boxing Federation of India, became vice-president of the IBA at the recently concluded Women's World Championships in New Delhi ©Getty Images
Ajay Singh, President of the Boxing Federation of India, became vice-president of the IBA at the recently concluded Women's World Championships in New Delhi ©Getty Images

Singh, who is in his second term as BFI President, credited his election as a recognition of India's growing stature in the world of boxing and described it as an honour for the country.

"It's basically a recognition of India's growing power and importance in the world of boxing,” he said.

"It's not an individual honour but for the entire country.

"This position will give me an opportunity to work even harder for the cause of Indian boxing.

"We often say that we need to bring up the whole infrastructure, i.e. to get more coaches, referees and judges and better trainers for our boxers.

"We need the latest sport science technique to ensure that our boxers get absolutely the best.

"I think this position in IBA will strengthen our ability to do all of this."