Bermuda’s boxing chances of reaching the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo are on the ropes after the IOC suspended all funding for the crisis-hit International Boxing Association.

It is now doubtful whether the Bermuda Boxing Federation will be able to send Andre Lambe and Tyler Christopher to Tijuana, Mexico, for the Central American and Caribbean Games qualifiers next week after the loss of subsequent funds from the Bermuda Olympic Association.

Despite hosting a successful amateur event at CedarBridge Academy 12 days ago, where Lambe and Christopher both claimed wins, the BBF remains short of the required target to send both fighters and their support team to the qualifiers, which run from March 9 to 18.

The BBF had banked on financial assistance from the BOA, which has had no choice but to pull its funding after the IOC’s decision to shelve all Olympic Solidarity boxing-related activities until further notice.

Boxing could be excluded from the Tokyo Games unless AIBA resolves long-term governance problems, the IOC has warned.

Nathan Dill, the BBF president, has since reached out to Michael Weeks, the new Minister of Social Development and Sport, and long-term sponsors in an effort to cover the costs of sending its team to Tijuana.

Lambe and Christopher have two opportunities remaining to qualify for Tokyo 2020, at the CAC Games in Barranquilla, Colombia, this summer, and the Pan American Games in Lima, Peru, next year.

“It is most upsetting to have learnt through the Bermuda Olympic Association that, due to ongoing issues with international body AIBA, all funding will be pulled from boxing and specifically from our national team athletes at this crucial time,” Dill said in a statement.

“As Bermuda should be aware, the Bermuda Boxing Federation has set up a national programme with the goal to once again have boxing reach the Olympics.

“We are reaching out to the community in the hopes that we can rally behind these athletes, who are training hard and forging a path for the next generations of athletes behind them.”

The loss of BOA funding could now hasten Lambe and Christopher’s pending decision to turn professional, according to Melissa Looby, the BBF programmes and event manager.

“The BBF has received immense support from the Bermuda Olympic Association over the last year and want to be clear that this decision to cut our funds is not theirs, but that of the IOC,” Looby said. “Regardless of the cause, this remains a major setback that stands to discourage athletes and our fear is that situations like this will hasten their pending decision to go pro.”

Dill added: “The BBF were counting on a request for funding from the BOA which was submitted in January.

“Unfortunately, just as we were making progress on that matter, due to those governance issues of AIBA, all funding has been pulled. This is now a major source of anxiety just days before our athletes are set to travel.”

Lambe and Christopher are hoping to emulate Olympians Clarence Hill, Roy Johnson, Robert Burgess and Quinn Paynter by reaching the Tokyo Games. Boxing is the only sport to have put Bermuda on the Olympic map, with heavyweight Hill winning bronze at the Montreal Games in 1976,

Anyone interested in assisting the BBF in sending its boxers to the CAC Games qualifiers in Tijuana can email bermudaboxingfed@gmail.com