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Sports Ministry strips Russia’s MMA Union of accreditation after teen’s death in cage

The Russian MMA Union’s press office disclosed to TASS on June 5 that the tournament in Belgorod was not an officially sanctioned event

MOSCOW, June 26. /TASS/. The Russian Ministry of Sports has suspended the accreditation of the national MMA (Mixed Martial Arts) Union following the reported death of an underage fighter earlier this month, the union’s press office told TASS on Monday.

A 16-year-old MMA fighter was killed at a sports tournament in Russia’s Far East in early June.

"The accreditation of the Russian MMA Union has been suspended for a period of three months following the order from the [Russian] Sports Ministry.

Following the Sports Ministry’s decision, the Russian MMA Union submitted an official letter to the ministry asking it to annul the suspension because it had already corrected all of the previously mentioned shortcomings.

"The MMA Union of Russia sent a letter to the Ministry of Sports to confirm the correction of all previously reported setbacks," a source close to the situation told TASS, adding that the revoked "accreditation can be restored within a month."

The tournament was held in the Amur Region’s city of Belogorsk on June 4. Belogorsk Mayor Stanislav Melyukov reported on his Telegram channel later in the day that during one of the tournament’s bouts, a 16-year-old fighter from the Arkharinsk district sustained a heavy blow to his head and died later in a hospital’s intensive care ward. Both underage fighters did not wear the required open-face headguards.

The Russian MMA Union’s press office disclosed to TASS on June 5 that the tournament in Belgorod was not an officially sanctioned event. "This tournament was not on the unified calendar," the press office stated. "It was not scheduled for 2023."

Another source in Russia’s MMA Union told TASS later on June 5 that the referee who oversaw the fight would be stripped of his professional license.

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