Amateur boxing's governing body AIBA insist there is no way back for banned Great Britain head coach Rob McCracken unless he renounces his professional links with Carl Froch.
Despite confusion over exactly when AIBA's new rule which banishes coaches with professional links first appeared on their statutes, the governing body will grant no special dispensation nor means of appeal.
McCracken has been told he will not be accredited for AIBA events unless he splits with Froch. Even then the process will take six months, meaning he will miss the World Championships and first Olympic qualifiers in Baku in September.
However the origin of the AIBA rule is far from clear. Having initially claimed it existed when McCracken got the job as head coach in 2009, implying he got the job improperly by not stating his professional links, they later back-tracked.
"I can confirm it is a new rule which was ratified last month," said an AIBA spokesman.
"It is unfortunate for the affected parties but if they begin the process now they can still be in the corner for the Olympic Games."
It is virtually inconceivable that McCracken will choose to part with Froch, whom he has coached throughout his career and who has a WBC super-middleweight title defence against Glen Johnson set for June.
McCracken was not available for comment, but a British Amateur Boxing Association official said: "We are very shocked by this new rule that could have a serious impact on our medal chances at the London 2012 Olympics."
The relationship between AIBA and the Amateur Boxing Association of England has cooled in recent months following former ABAE chief executive Paul King's aborted attempt to replace AIBA president Ching-Kuo Wu.
