Amateur boxing's ruling body will investigate allegations that millions

of dollars have been paid to guarantee Azerbaijan wins two gold medals

in the ring at next year's London Olympics.

The International

Amateur Boxing Association (AIBA) said it will look into the allegations

made by BBC TV's Newsnight on Thursday that £5.7m from Azerbaijan

was paid to World Series Boxing (WSB), a franchised league supported by

AIBA.

AIBA organises boxing at the Olympics.

President

Ching-Kuo Wu said the BBC claims were "totally untrue and ludicrous" but

added he would investigate them – a move welcomed by the International

Olympic Committee.

"I will immediately conduct an investigation into this because there is a zero tolerance policy in AIBA," he said.

According to the BBC report, an Azeri national paid the money to a WSB competition.

After

the program was broadcast, the AIBA issued a statement saying a loan to

WSB had been made by "an Azerbaijani investor … made on a commercial

basis and with a view to a commercial return for the investor".

The

statement added: "Any suggestion that the loan was made in return for

promises of gold medals at the 2012 Olympics is preposterous and utterly

untrue."

AIBA said it believed the allegations were made by

individuals with an axe to grind and added that the claims "demonstrate a

complete misunderstanding of the procedures which lead to the award of

Olympic boxing medals and the impossibility of influencing these".

The IOC backed the investigation, saying that it took any such accusations seriously.

"We

welcome AIBA's announcement of an immediate inquiry into these claims

and we await the outcome of their investigation," IOC spokesman Mark

Adams said.

"For its part, the IOC takes all allegations of

corruption very seriously. And we would urge the BBC to make any

evidence they have available to AIBA and to our Ethics Commission which

will then determine if further action is necessary."

Adams also highlighted moves by the IOC to ensure fairness in its competitions.

"We

would also note that the judging process in boxing, as in other sports

at the Games, are transparent and open to public scrutiny – and a number

of sports including boxing have made significant changes to their

procedures in recent years to deal with any potential issues," he said.