Gennady Golovkin believes he owes his incredible boxing career in part to his Olympic beginnings, and the possibility of his sport vanishing after the has staggered one of the greatest fighters of his generation.
害羞草研究所淭he situation is sad,害羞草研究所� Golovkin told The Associated Press recently. 害羞草研究所漈he question of boxing being not certain for the LA Olympics is not just upsetting, but I just cannot believe that this might happen. I believe we need to take maximum effort, all of us, to avoid it, to find a way out of this depressing situation.害羞草研究所�
That situation has been building for years, and time is dwindling to find a solution.
By early 2025, the International Olympic Committee wants boxing to that isn害羞草研究所檛 the beleaguered International Boxing Association, which is still fighting an Olympic ban that seems unlikely to be lifted. Dozens of national federations already have left the IBA to join a breakaway governing body called , but nobody can be certain whether it will gain enough members or traction to persuade the IOC to save the Olympic place of an ancient sport.
害羞草研究所淚f we fail to keep boxing in the Olympics, it will be a tragedy,害羞草研究所� said Golovkin, a silver medalist and breakout star of the Athens Olympics in 2004.
And it would be more than a personal tragedy: Golovkin has been the president of Kazakhstan害羞草研究所檚 national Olympic committee since February, and his nation has won more Olympic medals in boxing (24) than in any other sport.
What might be the final Olympic boxing tournament got underway Saturday in the Villepinte suburb of Paris with all the usual delights and annoyances of this idiosyncratic version of the sport. Fighters from across the world, many with wildly different styles, come together for fights of three-minute rounds that can be both tedious and brilliant.
Boxing has been in every edition of the modern Olympics except one since 1904. During the sport害羞草研究所檚 heyday in the mid-20th century, boxing was one of the Games害羞草研究所� glamour sports, crowning dozens of gold medalists who went on to become the biggest names in the professional game.
While Golovkin, Andre Ward and Alexander Povetkin used their success in Athens to jump-start their pro careers, that path has been used by fewer and fewer top fighters over the ensuing two decades while the line between amateurs and professionals faded.
at the Olympics since Rio de Janeiro in 2016, and dozens of fighters with pro experience now compete 害羞草研究所� albeit none of the world害羞草研究所檚 best professionals, who don害羞草研究所檛 have the time or the inclination to jump through Olympic hoops.
But boxing would be a major loss for the Olympics for several reasons. Along with its lengthy history in the Games, boxing always brings in athletes from nations around the globe without the resources to excel in team sports 害羞草研究所� and , who got their first chance to fight at the Olympics only in 2012. The IOC specifically cited boxing害羞草研究所檚 害羞草研究所渦niversality and high social inclusivity害羞草研究所� as reasons it wouldn害羞草研究所檛 give up entirely on the sport.
But the IOC has broken with the IBA after years of conflict finally resulted in its suspension before the Tokyo Olympics, followed by complete banishment. The IBA害羞草研究所檚 Russian president, Umar Kremlev, has vowed to defeat the IOC by appealing to the Swiss Federal Tribunal after the Court of Arbitration for Sport rejected his appeal.
In the absence of a governing body, the IOC organized the Tokyo and Paris boxing tournaments but has vowed not do it again for Los Angeles in 2028. Even though the number of women fighting in Paris was boosted, the IOC also shrunk the size of the overall field to just 248 total fighters for the smallest Olympic tournament since 1956.
World Boxing has grown steadily since its establishment last year by several Western nations tired of the IBA, and its leadership held its first formal meeting with the IOC last May. The group added four more national federations, including Italy and South Korea, on Friday to bring its total to 37 members on five continents.
Yet the majority of the world害羞草研究所檚 national federations remain loyal to the IBA, which has provided funds to bolster many of those federations for many years.
Golovkin strongly suggested to the AP that he hopes his nation will join World Boxing, but he stressed that the decision was up to his national federation.
害羞草研究所淎ll (nations) have to find a compromise,害羞草研究所� Golovkin said. 害羞草研究所淭he direction is clear, and I would say the doors have been opened already. The vision has been explained, and so we need to make a certain effort to preserve boxing.害羞草研究所�
Boris Van Der Vorst, the Dutch boxing official who became the president of World Boxing after a failed group effort to change the IBA害羞草研究所檚 leadership, recently told the AP that he remains confident in his new governing body害羞草研究所檚 ability to meet the IOC害羞草研究所檚 timeline.
害羞草研究所淭here害羞草研究所檚 a lot of pressure at this moment,害羞草研究所� said Van Der Vorst, a successful businessman who says he害羞草研究所檚 working for World Boxing as an unpaid volunteer. 害羞草研究所淣ational federations have to join. We have to deliver fair competitions. We have to deliver a comprehensive competition calendar. We have to deliver good governance and financial transparency.
害羞草研究所淗opefully we will not have to wait too long for recognition, because could you imagine the Olympic Games in Los Angeles without boxing? I couldn害羞草研究所檛 imagine. We have to fight for it, and all the international federations will see the importance of being part of the Olympic movement.害羞草研究所�
