Press Release

Boxers compete for Olympic quota places in final stages of Oceania Qualification Tournament

With the boxing action starting earlier this week, 140 boxers from 17 countries have been whittled down to a remaining 26 male and female boxers. The finalists will compete for 13 Olympic places in the final two days of the Oceania Qualification Tournament at the Pacific Games in the Solomon Islands.

Australia has dominated so far in the competition, seeing every one of the nation’s boxers progress to the 13 Olympic qualification finals, which will take place across Friday 1 – Saturday 2 December. The action will also see boxers from:

  • New Zealand (4)
  • Samoa (3)
  • Tonga (3)
  • Papa New Guinea (2)
  • Solomon Islands (1)
  • Fiji (1)

The full list of upcoming Olympic qualification final bouts at the Oceania Qualification Tournament are:

ClassFinalist 1 / NationFinalist 2 / Nation
Women’s
49-50kg		Tasmyn Benny / NZLMonique Suraci / AUS
Women’s
53-54kg		Tiana Echegaray / AUSHainite Kayla Tuitupou / TON
Women’s
55-57kg		Tina Rahimi / AUSFeofaaki Epenisa /
TON
Women’s
60kg		Tyla McDonald / AUSErin Walsh / NZL
Women’s
64-66kg		Sheila Yama / PNGMarissa Williamson /
AUS
Women’s
71-75kg		Deanne Read / NZLCaitlin Parker / AUS
Men’s
49-51kg		Yusuf Chothia / AUSClinton Tetekana / SLB
Men’s
55-57kg		Allan Oaike / PNGCharlie Senior / AUS
Men’s
61-63.5kg		Harry Garside / AUSElia Rokobuli / FJI
Men’s
68-71kg		Wendell Stanley / NZLShannan Davey / AUS
Men’s
76-80kg		Callum Peters / AUSRoman Viney / TON
Men’s
87-92kg		Ato Plodzicki-Faoagali /
WSM		Adrian Paoletti / AUS
Men’s
92kg+		Elijah Mercury-Leafa /
WSM		Teremoana Teremoana / AUS

World Boxing will be posting images and results on social media channels:

For more information, visit:

Eleven boxers claim gold in first World Boxing Challenge event at Tampere in Finland

Eleven boxers from five countries won gold medals at the first ever World Boxing Challenge event that took place in Tampere, Finland last weekend (24-26 November 2023).

The event, widely known as The Tammer Tournament, was hosted by the Finnish Boxing Federation in collaboration with World Boxing as part of its new World Boxing Challenge series. 

The World Boxing Challenge is designed to provide a structure to the existing calendar of competitions delivered by National Federations and awards ranking points to boxers based on their performances at these events which count towards their eligibility to compete in the World Boxing Cup and other major tournaments.

The action in Finland, which included five female weight classes and six for men, saw a strong performance from the home nation with Pihla Kaivo-oja (50kg) and Vilma Viitanen (57kg) winning gold in the women’s categories and Ismail Umar (63.5kg) matching them in the men’s.

It was a feat equalled by England and Germany, whose team’s also won three golds each.  The other nations that finished with a boxer on top of the podium were Norway and Wales who saw Sunniva Hofstad (75kg) and Rosie Eccles (66kg) respectively, triumph in their weight classes.

The full list of winners is:

WeightBoxerCountry
Women’s 50kgPihla Kaivo-oja,Finland
Women’s 54kgCharley DavidsonEngland
Women’s 57kgVilma ViitanenFinland
Women’s 66kgRosie EcclesWales
Women’s 75kgSunniva HofstadNorway
Men’s 51kgSalah IbrahimGermany
Men’s 63.5kg:Ismail UmarFinland
Men’s 71kgMagomed SchachidovGermany
Men’s 80kgRamtin MusahEngland
Men’s 92kgPatrick BrownEngland
Men’s 92+kgNelvie TiafackGermany

All of the results from the tournament can be viewed at

https://tammerturnaus.com/tulokset/.

Follow World Boxing’s social channels for updates on future World Boxing Challenge events:

Boris van der Vorst elected first President of World Boxing at inaugural Congress

Boris van der Vorst has been elected as the first President of World Boxing at its inaugural Congress in Frankfurt.

The Dutchman secured 63 per cent of the vote against Elise Seignolle from USA Boxing and will serve an initial two-year term.

In his inaugural Presidential speech following the election, Boris van der Vorst, said: “I am humbled and honoured to have been elected President of World Boxing and I would like to thank everyone that has supported me in recent weeks and over the last few years. My campaign was based on the principles integrity, honesty and trust and I will continue to promote these values within our growing boxing family.

“Making sure boxing remains at the heart of the Olympic Movement is our number one priority and I look forward to working together with the newly elected board and all of our member National Federations to help us deliver this.”

The Presidential election was one of a series of votes at the Congress which covered a range of positions including three Vice Presidents (VP), four places on World Boxing’s Executive Board and the Chairs of the Sport and Competition Committee, the Medical and Anti-Doping Committee and the Finance and Audit Committee.

Three women and five men took part in the Vice Presidential elections which saw Canada’s Ryan O’Shea, Matt Holt from GB Boxing and the CEO of Boxing Australia, Dinah Glykidis emerge with the most votes to secure the three places.

The four candidates elected to the Executive Board were: Michael Muller from Germany, Victorico Vargas from the Philippines, Sweden’s Susanne Karrlander and Marcos Candido de Brito of Brazil.

In the election to chair World Boxing Committees, Hernan Salvo or Argentina secured the role as Chair of Sport and Competition Committee; Dr Armando Sanchez from the USA got the most to Chair the Medical and Anti-Doping Committee and Julia Felton from Australia will Chair the Finance and Audit Committee.

The 11 winners in today’s elections will form a 14-person Executive Board, along with the two Athlete Representatives, Lauren Price and Richard Torrez Jr, and the Secretary General, Simon Toulson.

The Vice Presidents and Executive Board members will serve terms of two or four years. The difference in the length of terms is designed to enhance democratic accountability and means that World Boxing will hold elections every two years.

The Congress was attended by 26 of World Boxing’s 27 member countries. Delegates had one or two votes in line with the policies set out in the World Boxing statutes.

The Secretary General of World Boxing, Simon Toulson, said: “The inaugural Congress is a very significant milestone in the development of World Boxing and to have so many members attend in person, is a sign of people’s commitment to the organisation and everything we are trying to achieve for the sport.

“Hosting open, fair and transparent elections is a central element of World Boxing’s commitment to operating to the highest standards of governance and today’s events today have shown that the organisation is delivering on this commitment and I look forward to working with the newly appointed Executive Board and to help create a better future for the sport.”

A full list of the people elected to office is below:

OfficeNameLength of term
PresidentBoris van der Vorst (NED)Two years
Vice PresidentRyan O’Shea (CAN)Two years
Vice PresidentMatt Holt (GB)Four years
Vice PresidentDinah Glykidis (AUS)Four years
Executive BoardMichael Muller (GER)Two years
Executive BoardVictorico Vargas (PHI)Four years
Executive BoardSuzanne Karrlander (SWE)Two years
Executive BoardMarcos Candido de Brito (BRA)Two years
Chair Sport and Competition CommitteeHernan Salvo (ARG)Four years
Chair, Chair Medical and Anti-DopingDr Armando Sanchez (USA)Four years
Chair Finance and Audit CommitteeJulia Felton (AUS)Four years

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.

First commerical partnership for World Boxing sees it agree a four-year sponsorship deal for Sting to become its Official Competition Equipment Supplier

World Boxing, the new international federation established to keep boxing at the heart of the Olympic Movement, has agreed its first commercial partnership with Sting, one of the world’s leading manufacturers and suppliers of premium boxing kit and equipment.

The exclusive, four-year sponsorship deal means Sting will become World Boxing’s Official Competition Equipment Supplier and provide all the gloves, protective clothing, handwraps and training equipment used by boxers during tournaments including the World Boxing Cup series and the U19 and elite World Boxing Championships.

The agreement, which was formally signed at World Boxing’s inaugural Congress in Frankfurt (24-25 November 2023), will also see Sting provide expertise and advice on the development of competition equipment and contribite to the work of World Boxing’s Sport and Competition Committee. As part of this, both parties have also committed to explore the use of Artificial Intellgience (AI) in the development of intelligent kit for fitness.

World Boxing’s Secretary General, Simon Toulson, said: “Signing our first commerical partnership with one of the world’s top suppliers of premium boxing equipment is extremely positive for World Boxing. It shows that leading boxing brands like Sting share our values and principles and want to be associated with World Boxing as they believe in what we are trying to achieve for the sport and everyone connected with it.

“This will significantly enhance the quality and prestige of our competitions and is great news for all of the boxers using Sting equipment in World Boxing tournaments in the coming years, as they know they will be competing with top quality products and equipment.”

Amir Anis, Managing Director, Sting International, added: “It is great for Sting to be World Boxing’s first commercial partner and we are very excited to agree this four-year sponsorship deal that will ensure boxers competing at World Boxing events will have access to the safest and best equipment which will enable them to perform at their best and achieve their full potential.”

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. It currently has 27 members representing all of the continents that compete in international boxing.

Sting is a supplier of premium boxing equipment for Olympic boxers, professionals and fitness participants. Products include gloves, protective equipment, coaching products, accessories and punch bags which use the best materials, the latest design techniques and the most skilled craftsmen to create items of unrivalled quality. Sting was the official kit supplier for boxing to the 2016 Rio Olympic Games and has supply agreements with numerous leading National Federations including Australia, England, Germany, Scotland, USA and GB Boxing.

World Boxing announces 2024 competition calendar and opens bidding process for elite and U19 world championships

World Boxing, the new international federation established to keep boxing at the heart of the Olympic Movement, has announced a competition calendar for 2024 and opened the bidding process for its first two global tournaments.

The competition calendar details the events World Boxing will deliver in association with member National Federations in 2024 and includes two new competition formats, the World Boxing Cup and the World Boxing Challenge.

The event bidding process invites expressions of interest from countries that have the capability to host the U19 World Boxing Championships in November 2024, and the first Elite World Boxing Championships in November 2025. Both events will include male and female weight categories. 

National Federations interested in hosting either the 2024 U19 World Boxing Championships or the 2025 Elite World Boxing Championships can request further information by contacting info@worldboxing.org.

Simon Toulson, Secretary General, World Boxing explained: “Providing high-quality competiton opportunities that enable boxers to develop and progress is central to the work of World Boxing and, by working with key stakeholders, National Federations and trusted organisations, we have developed a calendar that will make this possible.

“The growth in our membership means World Boxing is now represented on every continent that participates in the sport.  It has enabled us to begin the planning process for staging world championships and we look forward to receiving expressions of interest from cities and countries that are keen to work with us on hosting these events in 2024 and 2025.”

The tournament calendar for 2024 has been created to ensure that boxers from National Federations aligned to World Boxing have a range of competitive opportunities in the next 12 months.  The calendar also references the Paris Olympic Qualification Tournaments as World Boxing members are eligible to compete in these events as part of the pathway to the 2024 Olympic Games.

Boxers from countries that are members of World Boxing can compete in all World Boxing tournaments.  To ensure that competitions are inclusive, boxers from countries that are not members can take part in events that take place before the 2024 Olympic Games, provided it has been approved by the Executive Board of World Boxing.

The two new formats, World Boxing Cup and World Boxing Challenge, have been designed in the interests of boxers and will provide a better structure and greater meaning to the current calendar in Olympic-style boxing by bringing a common standard to the existing network of international tournaments staged by National Federations. 

The World Boxing Cup is a new, annual competition series in which elite male and female boxers will accrue ranking points over several stages of competition throughout the calendar year.  It will culminate in a year-end Finals event in which the stage winners and other top-ranked boxers will compete for the main trophy.

The publication of the competition calendar was welcomed Tokyo 2020, middleweight gold medallist, Lauren Price, who is an Athlete Representatives on the World Boxing Executive Board. Price said: “Providing high-quality, international competition opportunities is central to supporting the development of boxers as it enables them to work on their their skills against a wide variety of opponents and styles. 

“The World Boxing calendar and the two new formats it has created will provide a better structure and greater meaning to the existing circuit of international tournaments which will benefit the boxers by giving them goals, titles and rewards to aim towards in the course of the year.”

Stage one of the World Boxing Cup 2024 will be held in England, 16-21 January 2024. This event is a new addition to the international boxing calendar and will be delivered by GB Boxing and England Boxing in association with World Boxing. 

The second stage of the World Boxing Cup 2024 will be in Pueblo, Colorado in the USA in April. It will be followed by two further rounds of the competition and culminate in the World Boxing Cup Finals in late 2024.

The World Boxing Challenge is designed to provide a structure to the existing calendar of smaller competitions delivered by National Federations.  Ranking points will be awarded to boxers based on their performances at these events which will count towards their eligibility to compete in the World Boxing Cup and other major tournaments including Continental and World Championships. 

Making these existing events part of a wider, more meaningful, competition structure with longevity over the course of the year will enhance their profile and prominence.

In the build-up to Paris 2024, the weight categories at World Boxing’s senior elite competitions will mirror the 13 classes that will be used at the Olympic Games. 

Simon Toulson, Secretary General, World Boxing added: “The creation of new competiton formats shows that we are delivering a structure that works for boxers and will benefit the sport. 

“As World Boxing grows as an organisation, we will add to the calender with the creation of more competitions at all levels.  These will become part of a dedicated, regular and reliable schedule of events that boxers and coaches can have faith will take place when they are scheduled to and will enable them to develop and improve as athletes.”

Full details of the calendar and a list of the scheduled competitions are available HERE.

An FAQ containing further details of World Boxings competition calendar is available HERE.

Beyond the confirmed events in England and the USA, World Boxing is in discussions with potential hosts for World Boxing Cup and World Boxing Challenge events in 2024. 

Timelines and processes for bidding for events will be transparent, timely and fair.  Decisions on hosting and timing will be made in the interests of boxers.   

All the World Boxing competitions will be subject to independent, third-party scrutiny of the processes for selecting technical officials, including referees and judges, to ensure sporting integrity and deliver fair competition for the boxers.

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.

Thirteen boxing places at Paris 2024 on offer when Oceania Qualification Tournament gets underway at the 2023 Pacific Games on the Soloman Islands

Thirteen places in the boxing competition at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games will be on offer when the Oceania Qualification Tournament gets underway at the 2023 Pacific Games in Honiara, on the Soloman Islands, 27 November – 2 December 2023.

The competition will feature six women’s categories and seven for men with the winners securing qualification for Paris 2024.

The Oceania Qualification Tournament is the last of five continental qualifying events that have been held as part of the boxing Pathway to Paris.

It will be followed by two final world qualifying events in 2024.  The first of these is in Busto Arsizio, on the outskirts of Milan, Italy, (29 February – 12 March 2024). The second and last Boxing Qualification Tournament will be held in Bangkok, Thailand (23 May – 3 June 2024).

Details of the draw and all results from the Oceania Qualification Tournament will be posted at https://boxing.athlete365.org/boxing-road-to-paris-2024/2023-oceania-qualification-tournament/ once the action gets underway.

World Boxing will also be posting updates throughout the competition on its social channels:

Germany tops the medal table after four days of top class action at ‘World Boxing Cup: Cologne 2023’

The fourth and final day of action at the ‘World Boxing Cup: Cologne 2023’ saw six women and seven men crowned champion, as Germany topped the medal table with a haul of 14, made up of five gold, two silver and seven bronze.

The home nation was closely followed by Cuba, who claimed three gold and two silver, and England who finished with two gold, two silver and two bronze.

The remaining gold medals were shared one apiece between Wales, Mongolia, and France.

Australia missed out on gold but did win six medals, the same tally as Mongolia.

The individual honours saw England’s Charley Davison, who won gold at bantamweight (54kg) named ‘Best Female Technical Boxer’. 

Taylor Bevan from Wales, who triumphed in the light-heavyweight (80kg) category, won the award for ‘Best Male Fighting Performance’.

The full list of winners at the ‘World Boxing Cup: Cologne 2023’ is:

Women’s 50kg: Maxi Kloetzer, Germany

Women’s 54kg: Charley Davison, England

Women’s 57kg: Elise Glynn, England

Women’s 60kg: Namuun Monkhor, Mongolia

Women’s 66kg: Stefanie Von Berge, Germany

Women’s 75kg: Davina Michel, France

Men’s 51kg: Salah Ibrahim, Germany

Men’s 57kg: Rolando Martinez, Cuba

Men’s 63.5kg: Erislandy Alvarez, Cuba

Men’s 71kg: Magomed Schachidov, Germany

Men’s 80kg: Taylor Bevan, Wales

Men’s 92kg: Jesus Nelson Williams, Cuba

Men’s +92kg: Nikita Putilov, Germany

The ‘World Boxing Cup: Cologne 2023’ was delivered by the German Boxing Association in collaboration with World Boxing.  Details of all the results and drawsheets can be viewed at: https://www.boxverband.de/cologne-boxing-cup-der-ablaufplan-des-turniers-in-koeln/

The 15 nations that took part in the competition included 11 countries that are members of World Boxing: Australia, Canada, Denmark, England, Finland, Germany, Mongolia, Norway, Scotland, Sweden and Wales. Three countries that are not currently members of the new IF, Cuba, France and Switzerland, were given approval to compete by the Executive Board of World Boxing. The final entrant represented the IOC’s Refugee team.

Strong home nation interest on finals day at ‘World Boxing Cup: Cologne 2023’

Home nation, Germany, will have seven boxers in today’s final day of action at the ‘World Boxing Cup: Cologne 2023’.

Other countries with strong interest in the final day include Cuba with five boxers, England with four and Wales with three. Australia and Denmark both have two boxers in today’s finals, while Mongolia, Switzerland, and France each have one.

Today’s finals follow an intriguing day of semi-finals yesterday in Cologne.

One of the biggest surprises of the day came in the women’s bantamweight (54kg) class where Australia’s Monique Suraci defeated France’s European U22 Champion Romane Moulai. She will face England’s Tokyo 2020 Olympian, Charley Davison, who overcame Germany’s Zeina Nassar in her semi-final.

Despite having a large contingent of boxers recently competing at the PanAmerican Games, the Cuban line-up in Cologne has impressed as the team won all five of its semi-finals.

At flyweight (51kg) Giovis Salfran outpointed Mongolia’s Aldarkhichig Battulga while Rolando Martinez did the same against another Mongolian, Bilguunsaikhan Kharkhuu at featherweight (57kg). World silver medallist Erislandy Alvarez defeated Germany’s Assan Hansen at light welterweight (63kg). The other two Cuban winners were light-heavyweight (80kg) Jorge Manuel Soto, who defeated Germany’s Delil Dadaev and Nelson Jesus Williams who got the better of Australia’s Ikeanna Enyi at heavyweight (92kg).

Two other strong performing nations this week have been Wales and England. In the women’s welterweight category (66kg), the Welsh Commonwealth Games champion, Rosie Eccles, eliminated Germany’s Leonie Mueller. Her fellow Welsh boxers, Garan Croft (71kg) and Taylor Bevan (80kg) both won their semi-finals.

For England, Charley Davison will be joined in today’s finals by Demie-Jade Resztan (50kg), Elise Glynne (57kg) and Patrick Brown who triumphed over Australia’s Eddie Coumi at heavyweight (92kg). 

One English boxer not joining his teammates in the finals is 2022 European Champion, Harris Akbar, who lost his light-middleweight (71kg) semi-final to the home nation’s Magomed Schachidov. The German will be joined in today’s finals by teammates Maxi Klotzer (50kg), Salah Ibrahim (51kg), Murat Yildirim (57kg), David Gkevorikian (63.5kg) Stefanie Von Berge (66kg) and Nikita Putilov (92kg+).

The draw for the finals can be viewed at:

The action will be streamed live from 1700 CET on Tuesday 31 October 2023 and can be viewed at:  

World Boxing will posting updates on its social channels:

The ‘World Boxing Cup: Cologne 2023’ is being delivered by the German Boxing Association in collaboration with World Boxing.

The 15 nations that have taken part in the competition include 11 countries that are members of World Boxing: Australia, Canada, Denmark, England, Finland, Germany, Mongolia, Norway, Scotland, Sweden and Wales. Three countries that are not currently members of the new IF, Cuba, France and Switzerland, have been given approval to compete by the Executive Board of World Boxing. The final entrant is representing the IOC’s Refugee team.