2023

World Boxing, the new international federation established to keep boxing at the heart of the Olympic Movement, will hold its inaugural Congress at the Mainarcaden Venue in Frankfurt am Main, Germany on 24 and 25 November 2023.

The Congress will host World Boxing’s first ever elections when members will vote for a range of offices including President, Vice President (VP) and places on World Boxing’s Executive Board along with the Chairs of the Sport and Competition Committee, the Medical and Anti-Doping Committee and the Finance and Audit Committee.

Frankfurt am Main has been specifically chosen as the location for World Boxing’s first elections owing to its historical significance as the cradle of the German democratic movement and the place (Frankfurter Nationalversammlung) where the first freely elected parliament for all German states first sat in May 1848.

All of the National Federations that have joined World Boxing will be eligible to take part in the Congress and vote in the elections which have received more than 40 nominations, from 18 countries across four continents, for the Executive positions.

In line with the processes set-out in World Boxing’s Statutes, Rules for Electoral Voting and Rules for Candidates of Elections (HERE), the candidates are currently being assessed for eligibility by an independent Vetting Panel. The Vetting Panel is made-up of three independent, external experts that do not have any involvement or knowledge of World Boxing and is supported by the leading independent provider of sport-specific arbitration and mediation services, Sport Resolutions.

Once the vetting process has been completed a final list of eligible candidates will be published in October 2023, no later than 30 days before the elections take place.

World Boxing’s members will have two or three votes depending on their compliance with the voting rules detailed in World Boxing’s statutes (HERE).

The elections will be overseen by an experienced, independent, third-party organisation.  Scrutineers will be onsite to ensure the veracity of the election processes and that candidates are treated in a fair and equitable manner.

Simon Toulson, Secretary General, World Boxing, said: “Hosting its inaugural Congress and holding open, fair and transparent elections will be a significant milestone in the evolution of World Boxing and demonstrate that the organisation is delivering on its commitment to the principles of integrity, honesty and excellence.  

“We have a number of excellent candidates and the support we have received from high calibre National Federations to participate in the Congress is a clear indication of the desire for change and determination to deliver a better future that exists across international boxing.

“By holding its first elections in a city which is so historically linked to the principles of democratic process, we aim to send out a strong signal about the way that World Boxing will operate and the values that it stands for as an organisation.”

The Secretary General of the German Boxing Association, Michael Mueller, added: “Hosting this inaugural Congress in Germany is a sign of our federation’s commitment to supporting the goals of World Boxing and working closely with this new international federation and all of our fellow members to ensure the future of Olympic boxing for all our athletes.”

World Boxing was launched in April 2023 and aims to ensure that boxing remains at the heart of the Olympic movement. It will seek recognition from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and plans to work constructively and collaboratively to develop a pathway that will preserve boxing’s ongoing place on the Olympic competition programme at Los Angeles 2028 and beyond.

World Boxing, the new international federation established to ensure boxing remains at the heart of the Olympic Movement, has added two new members to its Executive Board (EB), Dinah Glykidis, Chief Executive of Boxing Australia and Marketa Haindlova, who is the Founder and Principal of an International Law Firm specialising in sport.

The pair have extensive experience in a wide variety of sports executive roles and were unanimously appointed following a request by World Boxing to National Federations asking them to nominate individuals with the skills and expertise to make a positive contribution to the work of the EB.

Dinah Glykidis has been the CEO of Boxing Australia for three years and is responsible for the leadership and strategic direction of the organisation.   Under her leadership, the federation has made progress in a number of areas including improvements in the provision of medical services, the introduction of new committees, the establishment of partnerships to improve governance and regulation and the creation of new initiatives to enhance Boxing Australia’s pathways programme.

JUDr. Marketa Vochoska Haindlova LL.M. is an attorney and sports executive.  She is the founder and principal of an international law firm, Marketa Haindlova, specialising in sports law and has specific expertise in governance and dispute resolution.  In parallel to her legal practice, Marketa has extensive executive experience in governance and sports diplomacy and has previously served as Chair of the Board of Appeal and Review of the Football Association of the Czech Republic.  She co-founded the Czech Association of Football Players and is a member of the Expert Group of the National Council for Sport, a Board member of both the National Court of Arbitration for Sport in the Czech Republic and the FIFPRO Division Europe Executive Board.  Since July 2023, she has been a member of the UEFA Fair Play and Social Responsibility Committee.

The new additions mean World Boxing’s EB is made-up of 12 men and women from 9 countries across four continents.  It includes two Athlete Representatives: Tokyo 2020, middleweight gold medallist, Lauren Price from Wales, and the USA’s super-heavyweight silver medallist, Richard Torrez Jr. 

The 12 men and women will serve as members of the EB on an interim basis until the organisation’s inaugural Congress in November 2023 when they will have the opportunity to stand for election to the EB, which will be voted-on by the membership of World Boxing.

Dinah Glykidis, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Boxing Australia, said: “It is vitally important that boxing remains at the heart of the Olympic Movement and I am delighted to have the opportunity to play my part in making sure this happens.  World Boxing offers hope of a better future for everyone connected with the sport and I am looking forward to working with my colleagues to create an international federation that we can all be proud of that puts the interests of boxers at the heart of decision making.”

Marketa Haindlova commented: “Boxing is one of the world’s most traditional sports and has always been an integral and valued member of the world’s sport community. Many international sport organizations today face significant challenges and threats and I am very proud to be part of an organisation, in World Boxing, that is proactively addressing these while embracing the key values of fair play and transparent governance. World Boxing has been set-up to preserve the integrity of boxing and enable it to grow and I look forward to contributing to this process.”

World Boxing was launched in April 2023 and aims to ensure that boxing remains at the heart of the Olympic Movement.  It will seek recognition from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and plans to work constructively and collaboratively to develop a pathway that will preserve boxing’s ongoing place on the Olympic competition programme at Los Angeles 2028 and beyond.