The Deal
Last week, World Boxing, the rebel governing body launched in April 2023, was granted provisional recognition by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in a major coup.
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This decision means that the IOC now recognizes Switzerland-based World Boxing as the sport’s international federation within the Olympic movement.
The IOC, in unveiling its allocation of provisional recognition, announced that World Boxing “has continued to make progress regarding the identified areas of consideration to be recommended for IOC provisional recognition.”
Why it matters
This move represents a substantial boost for boxing’s chances of being included in the sporting program for the Los Angeles Olympic Games in 2028 – its future as an Olympic sport is currently in serious doubt after the International Boxing Association (IBA) had its IOC recognition removed in 2023.
That represented an extremely rare step taken by the IOC and was thought to put an end to boxing’s hopes of maintaining its long-standing presence as an Olympic sport, in Los Angeles.
For the last two Summer Olympics, in Tokyo and Paris, the boxing events were run by the IOC itself, following the IBA’s initial suspension in 2019, and then its removal as an Olympic body two years ago.
World Boxing, and those national federations to have joined its ranks, will be desperate for the sport to be put in the events program for LA28, with boxing having been part of every Summer Olympics since the 1910s.
Jake Kemp, sport analyst at GlobalData, explains: “The Olympics offers a great platform for boxers to build their profile and create a clearer pathway (and almost a fast track) to future success. Many world champions in the sport today are still described as ‘Olympic Champions’ by stadium announcers to highlight what a medal means to boxers, even years after.
“The best example of showing how Olympic boxing can boost a fighter's commercial value is the UK's Anthony Joshua. The 2012 Super-Heavyweight Champion, in winning a gold medal at a home games, was able to secure an abundance of sponsorship opportunities from day one as a professional, and soon boasted an extensive portfolio worth millions in revenue outside of the ring.
“Indeed, Olympic boxing has been the platform that has ignited many great professional careers such as Roy Jones Jr., Oscar De La Hoya, Katie Taylor, and Oleksandr Usyk to name but a few.
“At a professional level, the sport offers strong commercial appeal for US audiences, and this is where the commercial value of including boxing in the program in 2028 lies.”
The IBA was suspended following a myriad of issues around finances, governance, and competition integrity, which – as these were not resolved – ultimately led to its status as an Olympic body being revoked by the IOC. The IBA (which has been in dispute with the IOC for many years) has been headed up by Russia’s Umar Kremlev since 2020.
Ever since World Boxing launched, the IBA has looked to publicly disparage the new body and has even taken legal action against it, despite the rebel organization having substantially grown in size and scale over the last two years.
So far, the IBA (which has also continued to feud significantly with the IOC over the last 18 months, since its suspension) has made no public comment on the decision by the IOC.
However, last month it did say that it was planning to file criminal complaints against the IOC in the US, France, and Switzerland.
World Boxing set up an Olympic commission to support its aim of provisional recognition last September, and now has 78 members across five continents, with four continental confederations now established.
The Detail
In terms of the governance criteria required for provisional recognition, the IOC commented that World Boxing has “put in place the structure and documentation for good governance … and has demonstrated strong willingness and effort in enhancing good governance and implementation.”
The Swiss body has also successfully applied for signatory status with the World Anti-Doping Code, and “has provided assurance about its revenue-generating process based on multi-year commercial partnership agreements.”
In addition, World Boxing has shown – the IOC has said – that 62% of boxers from the Paris Olympics were affiliated with existing World Boxing member federations.
In a statement, World Boxing’s president Boris van der Vorst commented: “This is a very significant moment for everyone connected with the sport of boxing in the Olympic movement. Keeping its place at the Olympic Games is absolutely critical to the future of our sport at every level … And this decision by the IOC takes us one step closer to our objective of seeing boxing restored to the Olympic program.
“The decision by the IOC is an important milestone, however, everyone connected with World Boxing understands that being part of the Olympic movement is a privilege and a responsibility and not a right. There is still a lot of work to do, and everyone is as committed as ever to continuing to work together and doing everything within our power to deliver a better future for our sport and ensuring that boxing remains at [the] heart of the Olympic movement.”
Gennady Golovkin, who runs the aforementioned World Boxing Olympic commission, added: “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.”
