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Ndidi Massay appointed as NYSAC interim chairperson

Fighters Network
26
Jul
The winds of change are blowing at the New York State Athletic Commission, as, on Monday, chairman Tom Hoover, an ex-NBA’er, tendered his resignation.
Hoover had been inserted over attorney David Berlin, who’d been installed after longtime chief Melvina Lathan was dislodged.
The agency is still grappling with fallout from the injuries suffered by heavyweight boxer Magomed Abdusalamov at the Madison Square Garden Theater in December of 2014. A Inspector General report on the incident and aftermath noted that the handling of the matter could have been better conducted. Lathan comes under fire in the report and Hoover also drew negative attention when Berlin alerted superiors that he’d engaged in what Berlin deemed inappropriate conduct, which took advantage of his position.
So, the question stands: Who will run the agency, which oversees pro boxing, and now also mixed martial arts, which, two months ago, received the thumbs up to run events in New York state in the fall.
One Ndidi Massay is the chair, for now, on an interim basis.
Governor Andrew Cuomo would make the selection of a full time chairperson and, as of now, we don’t know if Massay is being considered for the post full time or if she’d take the slot, if offered.
An attorney who received a journalism degree and played softball at Northwestern, then received a law degree from Notre Dame, Massay was Executive Director at Rise To Win, a non-profit organization started by Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross, which seeks to improve race relations through sport.
One of the topmost items for Massay to wrestle with is the integration of MMA into the agency and also looming legislative matters, which conceivably would make a seven-figure bond mandatory for any fight promoter to produce, to go toward insuring the wellness of participating athletes. It is theorized that less-established promoters could be driven out of state and forced to promote elsewhere, if they are unable to raise the cash necessary to supply the bond.
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