While boxing has been a staple during the Summer Games, the operations behind the scenes haven’t been smooth.
In 2019, the IOC suspended the Olympic boxing governing body, the IBA (International Boxing Association) from organizing Olympic tournaments due to suspect activity and criticism over things such as finances and judging.
While the IBA has threatened to take the IOC to international court, the latter is moving closer to giving the IBA’s responsibility to World Boxing (WB), which was formed to break away from the IBA.
The IOC organized boxing at the 2021 Tokyo Games and the 2024 Paris Games but doesn’t want to do it again in LA in 2028.
So the WB, led by former boxing star Gennady Golovkin, has been working with the IOC to take up the mantle formerly held by the IBA and last week received “provisional recognition” from the IOC, another step toward the former’s goal.
“Receiving provisional Olympic recognition from the IOC is an important achievement and demonstrates that our sport is on the right path. This decision brings us one step closer to our main goal – preserving boxing at the Olympic Games,” Golovkin said in a statement.
While more work remains, World Boxing is headed in the right direction, and to the delight of boxing fans worldwide, boxing has taken another step forward in its quest to remain on the list of Olympic sports in 2028.
