By Ludo Saenz

Francisco "Paco" Valcarcel, President of the World Boxing Organization, explained his organization's decision to strip two-time Olympic gold medal winner Guillermo Rigondeaux (15-0, 12KOs) of the WBO super bantamweight world title.

Rigondeaux captured the title in April of 2013, when he defeated Nonito Donaire, but since then he has only made three defenses. And Rigondeaux has not fought since December of last year, which has stalled the entire division.

Valcarcel discussed his decision at the WBO's ongoing annual convention which is taking place at the Hilton Hotel Lake Buena Vista in Orlando, Florida.

"Unfortunately we had to deal today with the topic of Rigondeaux, who over 31 months has only made three fights. He has not made any announcement on when he will fight again. We do not know what the reasons are [for this inactivity] and we can not punish 15 other fighters that are in the rankings to protect a champion regardless of how good he is," said Valcárcel.

"For boxing purists, Rigondeaux is one of the most extraordinary boxers that you can see. But there is a responsibility to those who are ranked under the WBO. The title is not something that belongs to the champion, but to the entire sport and every member of the sanctioning body that is rated has a right to fight for it."

"For us, we feel sorry for stripping him as world champion, but we must enforce the rules for inactivity. The title has to be declared vacant, and in this case the champion has only made three defenses in almost three years."

Rigondeaux, who still holds the WBA 'super' title at 122, has a right to appeal the WBO's decision.

If the decision stands, the top rated fighters are Cesar Juarez is Mexico (1) and Nonito Donaire (2). Juarez and Donaire are scheduled to collide on December 11th in Puerto Rico and there is a good chance that Rigondeaux's old belt will be at stake.