NEWS

PRESS RELEASE

Statement from World Boxing following the decision today by the 140th IOC Session to withdraw recogniton of IBA. 

“We welcome the announcement by the 140th International Olympic Committee (IOC) Session to withdraw recognition of IBA.

“This is a positive development for the sport and we were very pleased to hear the supportive words of the IOC’s President, Thomas Bach when he said: “Because we value the sport of boxing so much, we believe the boxers fully deserve to be governed by an international federation with integrity and transparency.”

“The IOC’s decision and the comments by its President make it clear that IBA will never again be allowed to organise a boxing tournament at the Olympic Games and that a new international federation – which is committed to delivering sporting integrity and operates according to the highest standards of governance, transparency and financial management – will inevitably be required to oversee future Olympic boxing tournaments. 

“World Boxing supports this view and understands that being part of the Olympic Games is a privilege and not a right and is committed to working constructively and collaboratively with the IOC and all other stakeholders to develop a pathway that will preserve boxing’s long-term place on the Olympic programme.

“This is a hugely significant moment for the sport.  All National Boxing Federations now have a critically important decision to make if they want boxers from their country to have the opportunity to compete at the Olympic Games at Los Angeles and beyond and we urge every National Federation that cares about boxers and boxing to join and support World Boxing in its efforts to ensure boxing remains at the heart of the Olympic Movement.”

PRESS RELEASE

World Boxing to increase representation on its Executive Board and establish new Committees to oversee both Sport and Commercial Development 

World Boxing will add two new members to its Interim Executive Board (IEB) and establish both a Technical Sport Committee and a Marketing and Commercial Development Committee, following its most recent board meeting on 15 June 2023.

Thirteen men and women from 11 countries have been invited to join the Technical Sport Committee which includes referees and judges, technical officials, coaches, administrators and people with competition management experience.  Eight members have confirmed they will join the Committee and five others have been invited.  The first meeting will be at the start of July.

The Marketing and Commercial Development Committee is made-up of four men and women with expertise in marketing and branding, sponsorship, sports administration and business development.  The quartet will hold their first meeting in July.

In addition to the creation of the new Committees, it was agreed that two new places will be made available on the IEB of World Boxing.  National Federations have been asked to nominate candidates and the two new members will be announced in July 2023.

The meeting on 15 June 2023 reported that World Boxing is currently processing a series of membership applications from National Federations and has experienced a significant increase in enquiries following the recent announcement by the Executive Board of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to recommend it withdraws recognition of the International Boxing Association (IBA).

Representatives of World Boxing will also be attending the forthcoming European Games in Krakow, 21 June – 3 July 2023, where they will host a series of fringe meetings with National Federations that have expressed an interest in becoming a member of World Boxing.

PRESS RELEASE

World Boxing statement following the decision of the IOC’s Executive Board to recommend to IOC Session to withdraw recognition of IBA

“IBA’s persistent failure to address longstanding issues over sporting integrity, governance, transparency and financial management has caused huge damage to international boxing and we welcome the clarity provided by the IOC in its statement which says: ‘The Executive Board (EB) of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) today recommended to the IOC Session (on 22 June 2023) to withdraw recognition of the International Boxing Association (IBA), in accordance with Rule 3.7 of the Olympic Charter (OC)’.

“This is a very significant moment as it provides an opportunity for the sport (subject to the decision of the IOC Session on 22 June 23) to move on from the corrosive leadership of IBA which has brought boxing to a place where its status as part of the Olympic programme is in doubt.  

“The loss of Olympic status would be devastating for boxing and have damaging long-term consequences, across the globe, for boxers and everyone connected with the sport, from the elite level to the grassroots.

“World Boxing was established to prevent this catastrophic situation from arising and create a better future and is committed to working constructively and collaboratively with the IOC and all other stakeholders to develop a pathway that will preserve boxing’s ongoing place on the Olympic programme.

“Boxing is at a crossroads and we urge every National Federation that cares about boxers and boxing to think about how they can help to deliver a better for future for the sport and support World Boxing in its efforts to keep boxing at the heart of the Olympic Movement.”

PRESS RELEASE

USA’s two-time World Champion, Shawn Porter, pledges support for World Boxing

The USA’s two-time, World Welterweight champion, Shawn Porter, has pledged his support for the newly created international sports federation, World Boxing, which has been set-up to ensure boxing remains at the heart of the Olympic Movement. Speaking on a recent edition of his highly acclaimed The Porterway Podcast, the former IBF and WBC champion said:

“We definitely want to support World Boxing. I will do my part by reaching out to those other champions of today who were, once upon a time, champions of amateur boxing, so we can all support this and keep it moving.”

Porter’s supportive comments (HERE) came during a 16-minute segment of his show dedicated to the situation facing boxing, which is not currently part of the Olympic programme for Los Angeles 2028. It looked at the establishment of World Boxing and featured an interview with Chris Cugliari from USA Boxing, who was involved in the recent launch of the new federation. Cugliari explained:

“It would have devastating consequences for the development of talent through the amateur ranks, globally and in the United States, if boxing was off the Olympic programme. World Boxing is focused on putting the needs of boxers first; strong governance that provides checks and balances so that someone doesn’t have too much control; financial transparency; and third-party oversight of the field-of-play. World Boxing should be the international federation for Olympic-style boxing.”

Porter, who came through USA Boxing’s amateur system (with an impressive record of 276-14) but narrowly missed-out on selection for the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, went on to voice his concerns for the sport if boxing does not remain part of the Olympic Games after Paris 2024. He added:

“The reason I am talking about this is because this is where it all comes from. Any of the greats you have ever seen – it starts in the amateur programme. But now our amateur programme is in jeopardy. We are definitely going to document this (issue) and keep it at the forefront of The Porterway Podcast.”

The section on World Boxing can be viewed from 1:25:00 of The Porterway Podcast HERE.

PRESS RELEASE

Sport Resolutions enters agreement with World Boxing to provide independent support services and ensure strong governance and third-party oversight is embedded into workings of new international federation for boxing 

LAUSANNE, SWITZERLAND, 19 April 2023 – World Boxing has entered into an agreement with the leading independent provider of sport-specific arbitration and mediation services, Sport Resolutions, which will provide a variety of independent support services to the newly established international sports federation. 

As part of the arrangement, Sports Resolutions will create a third-party ethics and judicial procedure that is completely separate from World Boxing and will oversee any potential issues and disputes.

By establishing a relationship with Sport Resolutions, World Boxing aims to  ensure that the principle of third party oversight and enforceability is embedded into the day-to-day operations of the new organisation which has been set-up to ensure that boxing remains at the heart of the Olympic movement.

Sports Resolutions Chief Executive Richard Harry said:  “Sport Resolutions is delighted to be to providing a variety of support services for World Boxing. At the outset, World Boxing was clear that it required world leading processes with independence and integrity at its core, and chose to engage with Sport Resolutions for that reason. We are honoured to add World Boxing to our growing list of international clients and we very much look forward to assisting it on the journey ahead.”

World Boxing’s Interim Secretary General Simon Toulson added: “World Boxing is pleased to partner with Sport Resolutions as one of the premier ethics and arbitration service providers worldwide. We believe that Sport Resolutions will bring the necessary checks and balances to World Boxing activities and operations to guarantee the extremely high governance standards we are accountable to.”

World Boxing has been established by a group of like-minded boxing leaders from a number of National Federations across the world in response to the persistent issues surrounding boxing’s international governing body, whose failure to address the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) longstanding concerns over sporting integrity, governance, transparency and financial management has placed boxing’s future as an Olympic sport in doubt.

World Boxing’s Statutes have been developed following wide-ranging research of best practice in global sporting governance and cover every aspect of World Boxing’s operations including: safeguarding; the health and safety of boxers; refereeing and judging; competition manipulation; election protocols; codes of behaviour and equality and inclusion.  World Boxing’s statutes and all its rules and policies are publicly available on its website at www.worldboxing.org/governance.

PRESS RELEASE

New international sports federation established to secure the future of boxing as an Olympic sport 

Tokyo 2020 Olympic medallists, Lauren Price and Richard Torrez Jr, will be Athlete representatives on the Interim Executive Board of a new international federation for boxing

LAUSANNE, SWITZERLAND, 13 April 2023 – A collection of Boxing leaders from National Federations across the world have created a new, not-for-profit, international federation, World Boxing, which aims to ensure that boxing remains at the heart of the Olympic movement.

World Boxing has been established in response to the persistent issues surrounding Olympic-style boxing’s existing international governing body, whose failure to address the IOC’s longstanding concerns over sporting integrity, governance, transparency and financial management has placed boxing’s future as an Olympic sport in doubt.

World Boxing 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.  

World Boxing will put boxers’ interests at the centre of decision-making and its ways of working will be underpinned by rigorous governance practices designed to create a sustainable and inclusive global sporting structure where boxers from around the world can compete knowing that the integrity of the sport is guaranteed and competition is fair.

As part of its launch announcement World Boxing, made five pledges detailing its priorities for the sport, its commitment to boxers and its aims as an organisation.  The five pledges are:

World Boxing will ensure the views of athletes are represented at the highest level of decision-making and have a male and female boxer (with voting rights) on its Executive Board which will be elected by members at the organisation’s inaugural Congress in November 2023.   

In the period between the launch of World Boxing and the inaugural Congress it will be led by an interim Executive Board made-up of representatives from boxing organisations in Germany, Great Britain, the Netherlands, New Zealand, the Philippines, Sweden and the USA.  It will be overseen on a day-to-day basis by Interim Secretary General, Simon Toulson, who has extensive experience in international sport having previously led the International Canoe Federation (ICF) and the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF).

The two Athlete Representatives on World Boxing’s Interim Executive Board are Tokyo 2020, middleweight gold medallist, Lauren Price from Wales and the USA’s super-heavyweight silver medallist, Richard Torrez Jr.

To ensure that boxers have a strong voice in shaping the work of World Boxing, the two athlete representatives on the Executive Board will be supplemented by an Athletes Committee, made up of three men and three women, that will be responsible for representing the views of boxers worldwide and providing advice, guidance and opinions to World Boxing.  

“From being eight-years-old it was my ambition to go to the Olympic Games and once I took up boxing, everything I did was focused on working towards that goal.  To finally achieve it and then win a medal has been the highlight of my career and even though I am now a professional, I do not think anything will ever match what I did at the Olympics. Going to the Olympics is life changing and I cannot imagine a Games without boxing.  It provides a massive platform for the sport and for the boxers.  Without it, the boxers will suffer and the sport will be damaged so something has to be done to make sure boxing continues to be part of the Olympic Games.”

Lauren Price

“Winning a medal for my country at Tokyo 2020 was the best moment of my career.  To take that opportunity away from the next generation of boxers would be devastating for them as athletes and disastrous for the sport.  It is absolutely vital that boxing remains part of the Olympic Games and I am going to do everything I can to make sure that happens.”

Richard Torrez Jr

World Boxing will be led by an Executive Board and a President who will be elected by members at the organisation’s inaugural Congress in November 2023.   Membership applications are open and many National Federations, across the world, have already indicated their interest in joining World Boxing and running for election.

In the period leading up to the inaugural Congress, World Boxing will be led by an Interim Executive Board made-up of representatives from eight countries across four nationalities.  It includes a male and a female Athlete Representatives and an Interim Secretary General, who does not have voting rights.  

The current members of the Interim Executive Board are:

  • Matthew Holt, Chief Executive, GB Boxing
  • Tyson Lee, President, USA Boxing
  • Karin Mattsson, Board Member, Swedish Boxing Federation
  • Michael Mueller, Secretary General, German Boxing Association 
  • Karina Picson, Boxing Competition Official, the Philippiines
  • Lauren Price, Athlete Representative 
  • Richard Torrez Jr, Athlete Representative
  • Boris van der Vorst, President, Dutch Boxing Federation
  • Keith Walker, Chair, Boxing New Zealand
  • Simon Toulson, Interim Secretary General (without voting rights)

“It is vital that boxing continues to remain at the heart of the Olympic movement and to achieve this we need to re-establish a relationship of trust between those that the govern the sport and all of its stakeholders.  World Boxing aims to deliver this by creating a financially transparent organisation with strong governance structures that delivers sporting integrity and fair competition and acts in the interest of boxers and the sport.”

Matthew Holt, Chief Executive, GB Boxing

“The loss of Olympic status represents an existential threat to boxing that will have a negative impact on the sport at every level from grassroots clubs to the higher ends of professional boxing.   World Boxing aims to prevent this.  It will create a sporting structure designed to suit the best interests of boxers and ensure they continue to have the opportunity to compete at the Olympic Games.”

Tyson Lee, President, USA Boxing

“World Boxing represents a coming together of people whose interest is solely in creating a better future for boxers and ensuring the sport continues to be a major part of the Olympic Games.  Honesty and integrity will be central to World Boxing which is underpinned by strong governance procedures and has embedded the principle of independent, third-party oversight into its constitution to ensure it has rigorous, enforceable, governance structures that will drive ethical and transparent decision making.”

Boris van der Vorst, President, Dutch Boxing

World Boxing’s Statutes have been developed following wide-ranging research of best practice in global sporting governance and cover every aspect of World Boxing’s operations including: safeguarding; the health and safety of boxers; refereeing and judging; competition manipulation; election protocols; codes of behaviour and equality and inclusion.  World Boxing’s statutes and all its rules and policies are publicly available on its website at www.worldboxing.org.

Central to all of these is the principle of independent, third-party oversight and enforceability which World Boxing will ensure by working with the leading independent provider of sport-specific arbitration and mediation services, Sport Resolutions, to create a third-party ethics and judicial procedure that is completely separate from the organisation and will oversee any potential issues and disputes.

To ensure sporting integrity, World Boxing’s competitions will also be subject to independent, third-party scrutiny with the appointment of external assessors who will oversee and report on all aspects of competition management including refereeing and judging and the appointment and role of officials.

This operating structure reflects the approach taken by the IOC’s Boxing Task Force (BTF) for Tokyo 2020 when Price Waterhouse Coopers (PwC) was appointed to provide an independent assessment and review of refereeing and judging at the qualification events and the Olympic tournament.  

It will make sure that all World Boxing competitions are subject to independent, third-party oversight and deliver fair competition for the boxers where the outcome is determined solely by performance in the ring.  

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