NEWS

Over 400 boxers from 31 nations head to Kazakhstan for World Boxing Cup: Kazakhstan – Astana 2025

From June 30 to July 6, more than 400 boxers representing 31 countries will be battling it out for medals at the World Boxing Cup: Kazakhstan – Astana 2025.

The competition will be hosted in the country’s capital, Astana, at the Zhaksylyk Ushkempirov Martial Art Palace. Several Olympians and previous World Boxing Cup champions will be in action. It will feature the same twenty weight categories used in Poland and Brazil earlier this year, ten for men and ten for women.

The draw will be made for the event at 19:00 local time (GMT+5) on Sunday 29 June.

The confirmed registered nations are Australia, Azerbaijan, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chinese Taipei, Colombia, Croatia, Dominican Republic, England, Finland, France, Germany, India, Iran, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, South Korea, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Nigeria, Norway, Philippines, Poland, Slovakia, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United States and Uzbekistan.

The World Boxing Cup is a competition format developed by World Boxing whereby elite male and female boxers accrue ranking points over several stages of competition during the calendar year.

It is designed to bring greater structure and meaning to the competition calendar in Olympic-style boxing and culminates in a final event where the stage winners and other top-ranked boxers compete for the World Boxing Cup trophy.

The event will be livestreamed on World Boxing’s YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@officialworldboxing

Draws, results and additional information can be found at: https://www.kfb.kz

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

Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/officialworldboxing/

X – https://x.com/RealWorldBoxing

Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/OfficialWorldBoxing

World Boxing seeks to appoint full-time Secretary General

World Boxing is seeking to appoint a full-time Secretary General to support its continued growth and development and oversee the operational management of the organisation, which is the International Federation within the Olympic Movement with responsibility for governing boxing at world level.

The Secretary General will work with the President and Executive Board of World Boxing to support the growth and development of both the organisation and the sport of Olympic-style boxing, manage relationships with key stakeholders and have responsibility for all day-to-day operations.

The role will be based at World Boxing’s headquarters in Lausanne and specific responsibilities will cover:

  • Providing strategic leadership and overseeing governance
  • Operational management and deployment of organisational resources
  • Management of relationships with a wide range of stakeholders and representing World Boxing at key international forums, including the International Olympic Committee (IOC), other International Federations (IFs), and governmental bodies
  • Legal and ethical oversight

The full job description and details of how to apply are available here.

The closing date for applications is 23:59 CET Sunday 13 July 2025.

World Boxing is committed to fairness and equity and values diversity in all its dealings. It welcomes applications from suitably qualified and eligible candidates irrespective of age, disability, sex, race, religion or sexual orientation.

World Boxing was launched in April 2023 with a mission to ensure that boxing remains at the heart of the Olympic movement. It held its first formal meeting with the IOC in May 2024 and on 25 February 2025, it was granted provisional recognition by the IOC as the International Federation (IF) within the Olympic Movement governing the sport of boxing at world level. It currently has 111 member National Federations representing all five Continents that compete in Olympic style boxing.

World Boxing approves five new membership applications from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Indonesia, Romania and Trinidad & Tobago

The Executive Board of World Boxing has approved five more applications from boxing National Federations to increase its membership to 111 countries.

The five new members are the Bosnia and Herzegovina Boxing Federation, the National Boxing Federation of Georgia, the Indonesia Boxing Federation, the Romania Boxing Federation and the Trinidad & Tobago Boxing Association.

All of the new National Federations have completed a rigorous application process to join World Boxing. They are deemed to be in good standing and, through their statutes and operating processes, able to demonstrate a transparent and open election process, the existence and operation of WADA-recognised anti-doping polices and processes, evidence of independent, structured, dispute resolution and appeals processes, formal recognition by either their National Olympic Committee (NOC) or Ministry for Sport and a solid national and international boxing programme.

The President of World Boxing, Boris van der Vorst, said: “We are delighted to welcome five new National Federations to our growing membership. This is further evidence of the momentum behind World Boxing as we approach key milestones in the organisation’s journey.

“These nations are now eligible for the inaugural World Boxing Championships in September, followed by the World Boxing Cup Finals and our third Congress in November. These events will cap off a significant year for World Boxing after we received recognition as the International Federation of for Olympic boxing in March 2025.”

A full list of the 111 National Federations that are members of World Boxing can be viewed HERE.

Under World Boxing’s Statutes, the approval of the Executive Board means the five new National Federations have been endorsed for membership.  Final approval of membership status can only be conferred by Congress, which is the ultimate authority of World Boxing, and will be voted on at its next Congress which is scheduled to take place in New Delhi in November 2025.

World Boxing was launched in April 2023 with a mission to ensure that boxing remains at the heart of the Olympic movement. It held its first formal meeting with the IOC in May 2024 and on 25 February 2025, it was granted provisional recognition by the IOC as the International Federation (IF) within the Olympic Movement governing the sport of boxing at world level.

Further information on World Boxing is available at www.worldboxing.org.

Brazil tops medal table at Grand Prix Ústí nad Labem – World Boxing Challenge

Medals have been distributed after four days of boxing action at the Winter Stadium in Ústí nad Labem, Czechia, with 184 entered boxers whittled down to 19 gold medallists.

Brazil saw the most success, winning six gold medals along with one silver and three bronze, leading the overall table with ten medals.

USA were second best with nine total medals, followed by Japan with eight, while Italy and Canada made up the top five with five medals each. Every National Federation in attendance left with something, with every nation earning at least one bronze medal.

The full list of gold and silver medal winners is below:

Weight ClassGoldSilver
W48kgSHINOHARA Hiraku JPNDURIKOVA Nicole SVK
W51kgKAIVO-OJA Pihla FINNISHINAKA Yuna JPN
W54kgPEREZ Yoseline USADAVIDSON Charley ENG
W57kgMENDOZA Alyssa USAERDENEDALAI Michidmaa MNG
W60kgSANTOS Rebeca BRAAL AHMADIEIT Marif CAN
W65kgDERIEW Oshin Tahnee BELHAMORI Luca HUN
W70kgdos SANTOS Barbara BRAROSENDO Marie-Angelis USA
W75kgPEREIRA Viviane BRAGEMINY Melissa ITA
W80kgORTIZ Citlalli Vanessa MEXPENNEY Victoria CAN
50kgMAKINO Soushi JPNALDARKHISHIG Battulga MNG
55kgYAMAGUCHI Rui JPNTRINDADE Michael Douglas BRA
60kgOLIVEIRA Luiz Gabriel BRAKITAMOTO Shunsuke JPN
65kgERDENETSOGT Bat-Ulzii MGLNISHIYAMA Shion JPN
70kgREIS Kaian BRAMAKIN Callum ENG
75kgOFORI Joshua CANGUIDI Rontani ITA
80kgAKHILOV Pylyp HUNDENIS Nickenson CAN
85kgBEDIRHAN Kalkan TURDEROUICHE Michael AUT
90kgFILHO Isaias BRAGEORGES Malachi USA
+90kgLENZI Diego ITAWATTS Kelvin USA

The Grand Prix Ústí nad Labem has been hosted by the Czech Boxing Association for more than half a century and was given World Boxing Challenge status for the second year in a row.

Following the conclusion of the action in Czechia, focus now shifts to the World Boxing Cup—Astana, Kazakhstan 2025, taking place from 30 June – 6 July 2025. The event will take place in the Beeline Arena and is the final major World Boxing competition before the inaugural World Championships in Liverpool, this September.

To catch up on the livestreams, visit: https://www.youtube.com/@BoxCBA

To view the full results, visit: https://czechboxing.cz/grand-prix-usti-nad-labem

World Boxing becomes Associate Member of ASOIF

World Boxing has been admitted as an Associate Member of The Association of Summer Olympic International Federations (ASOIF) following its recent recognition as the International Federation for Olympic Boxing.

The decision was taken at the 49th ASOIF General Assembly, in Lausanne, Switzerland, on 11 June 2025. It follows the IOC’s approval of the inclusion of boxing on the LA28 Olympic programme earlier this year.

World Boxing President, Boris van der Vorst, said: “It is an honour for World Boxing to be admitted into ASOIF.  World Boxing was established to ensure that boxing continues to have an Olympic future and we are committed to being a supportive partner and working with our colleagues at ASOIF to uphold the highest standards of governance.

“This decision further cements the role of boxing within the Olympic Movement and means that every boxer in every gym around the world can continue to have the dream of one day competing on the biggest stage in sport at the Olympic Games.”

World Boxing was launched in April 2023 with a mission to ensure that boxing remains at the heart of the Olympic movement. It held its first formal meeting with the IOC in May 2024 and on 25 February 2025, it was granted provisional recognition by the IOC as the International Federation (IF) within the Olympic Movement governing the sport of boxing at world level.

Grand Prix Ústí nad Labem – World Boxing Challenge begins tomorrow

The Grand Prix Ústí nad Labem has been hosted by the Czech Boxing Association for more than half a century and has been given World Boxing Challenge status for the second year running.

184 boxers from 23 National Federations are ready to battle it out in the competition that runs from 11 – 14 June at the Winter Stadium in Ústí nad Labem, Czechia, with the official draw taking place at 21:00 CEST today (10 June). Preliminary action gets underway from 12:00 CEST tomorrow (11 June).

With the World Boxing Championships in Liverpool just a few months away, this event offers boxers and coaches a chance to make final preparations, given it features the same ten men’s and ten women’s categories.

The following nations have registered athletes for the event: Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Czechia, England, Finland, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Japan, Lithuania, Mexico, Mongolia, Moldova, Norway, Pakistan, Palestine, Sierra Leone, Slovakia, Switzerland, USA and Wales.

Marek Simak, President of the Czech Boxing Association, said: “This year it will be a special moment also for the Czech Boxing Association as we will celebrate 100 years anniversary. Last year’s edition of this top boxing tournament was held for the first time in cooperation with World Boxing as the World Boxing Challenge.

“We are proud that the Grand Prix has been awarded World Boxing Challenge recognition again.”

Following the conclusion of the World Boxing Challenge, attention will turn to the World Boxing Cup—Astana, Kazakhstan 2025, taking place from 30 June – 6 July 2025. The competition will take place in Beeline Arena and is the final major World Boxing competition before the World Championships in Liverpool.

To follow the action live, visit: https://www.youtube.com/@BoxCBA

To view results, photos and general information, visit: https://czechboxing.cz/grand-prix-usti-nad-labem

STATEMENT FROM WORLD BOXING

On Friday 30 May 2025, World Boxing issued a statement on its plans to introduce mandatory sex testing to determine the eligibility of athletes to take part in its competitions.

As part of this statement, World Boxing identified a specific individual by name. World Boxing recognises that it should not have named the person and, as a result, the President of World Boxing has written personally to the President of the Algerian Boxing Federation to offer a formal and sincere apology which acknowledges that greater effort should have been made to avoid linking the policy to any individual.

World Boxing plans to introduce mandatory sex testing as part of a new eligibility policy it is developing on “Sex, Age and Weight” that is designed to ensure a competitive level playing field for all men and women. 

As part of the policy development process, World Boxing has examined data and medical evidence from an extensive range of sources and consulted widely with other sports and will publish a policy in the coming months.

Given the complex nature of this issue, it will continue to consult with a wide range of experts in this area to ensure its policy reflects medical and scientific progress in this area in striving to deliver a competitive and fair level playing field for all athletes.

World Boxing to introduce mandatory sex testing for all boxers that want to participate in its competitions*

World Boxing will introduce mandatory sex testing, to determine the eligibility of male and female athletes that want to take part in its competitions. The introduction of mandatory testing will be part of a new policy on “Sex, Age and Weight” to ensure the safety of all participants and deliver a competitive level playing field for men and women. 

The policy is in the final stages of development and has been crafted by a specially convened Working Group of the World Boxing Medical and Anti-Doping Committee, which has examined data and medical evidence from an extensive range of sources and consulted widely with other sports and experts across the world.

World Boxing’s new polcy and the introducition of testing will mean that all athletes over the age of 18 that want to participate in a World Boxing owned or sanctioned competition will need to undergo a PCR (polymerase chain reaction) genetic test to determine their sex at birth and their eligibility to compete.

The PCR test is a laboratory technique used to detect specific genetic material, in this case the SRY gene, that reveals the presence of the Y chromosome, which is an indicator of biological sex. The test can be a be conducted by nasal/mouth swab, saliva or blood.

Athletes that are deemed to be male at birth, as evidenced by the presence of Y chromosome genetic material (the SRY gene) or with a difference of sexual development (DSD) where male androgenization occurs, will be eligible to compete in the male category.

Athletes that are deemed to be female at birth, as evidenced by the presence of XX chromosomes or the absence of Y chromosome genetic material (the SRY gene) or with a DSD where male androgenization does not occur, will be eligible to compete in the female category.

World Boxing respects the dignity of all individuals and its overriding priority is to ensure safety and competitive fairness to all athletes. To do this, it is essential that strict categories, determined by sex are maintained and enforced, and means that World Boxing will only operate competitions for athletes categorised as male or female.

Under the new policy, National Federations will be responsible for testing and will be required to confirm the sex of their athletes when entering them into World Boxing competitions by providing a certification of their chromosomal sex, as determined by a PCR test.

A failure to provide certification of the chromosomal sex of an athlete or the provision of a false certification, will render the athlete ineligible to compete and may lead to sanctions against the athlete and/or the athlete’s National Federation.

Where test results for boxers that want to compete in the female category reveal Y chromosome genetic material and a potential DSD, the initial screenings will be referred to independent clinical specialists for genetic screening, hormonal profiles, anatomical examination or other valuation of endocrine profiles by medical specialists.

As part of its new policy World Boxing will reserve the right to do genetic sex screening on new or existing athlete samples to confirm certification.

The policy will include an appeals process.  Support will be offered to any boxers that provide an adverse test result.

The new “Sex, Age and Weight” policy will come into force from in July 2025.

World Boxing was launched in April 2023 with a mission to ensure that boxing remains at the heart of the Olympic movement. It held its first formal meeting with the IOC in May 2024 and on 25 February 2025, it was granted provisional recognition by the IOC as the International Federation (IF) within the Olympic Movement governing the sport of boxing at world level.  On 20 March 2025, the IOC confirmed that boxing has been restored to the sport programme for LA28.

Further information on World Boxing is available at www.worldboxing.org.

* This statement was updated on 6 June 2025.