On April 9, at the 48th General Assembly of the Association of International Federations for the Summer Olympics in Birmingham, the body officially canceled the membership of the International Boxing Association.
Boxing, as a fierce and confrontational sport in the world of sports, has an indelible place in the long history. Not only on the Olympic stage, boxing is a symbol of the will and fighting spirit of the strong in human culture.
In recent years, the International Boxing Association (AIBA) has not only gained notoriety due to a series of management chaos and corruption scandals, but has also been expelled from the International Olympic Committee, becoming the first international sports federation in history to be denied recognition. As a result, the future of boxing for the Olympics has been bleak, and the entire sports world has been in an uproar.
Boxing controversy: management doubts and referee turmoil
Unfortunately, boxing, a beloved sport, has been plagued by mismanagement and questioning of referees in recent years. During the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, a number of shocking referee decisions raised questions around the world and eventually led to a total ban of AIBA referees for the subsequent Tokyo Olympics. This move undermined the prestige of the boxing program, and AIBA lost the right to organize the boxing tournament at the Tokyo Olympics.
Lengthy rectification: It has not yet been approved by the IOC
Even though boxing has made its debut again at the Tokyo Olympics under the auspices of the IOC's ad hoc working group, AIBA's continuous efforts to rectify it in recent years have never been able to bring it back to the IOC's arms. Whether it's financial issues, referee reasons, or the use of banned drugs by athletes, endless controversies have become a nightmare for AIBA.
The Future of Boxing: The Dawn of the World Boxing Organization
In the face of AIBA's decline and setbacks, the emergence of the "World Boxing" organization has given people a glimpse of hope. This new organization draws on elite forces from boxing institutions in the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany and other countries, breaking through the old system of AIBA and trying to operate in a more fair and transparent way, paving the way for the revival of boxing on the international sports stage. Although it has not yet been officially recognized by the IOC, the pace of progress is firm and strong.
Looking to the future: the rebirth of boxing on the Olympic stage
What boxing needs is an innovative management concept and a firm determination to reform. The IOC also has expectations to prepare boxing for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games. It is foreseeable that with the further engagement and cooperation between World Boxing and the International Olympic Committee, the concept of "Clear Stream" will continue to advance, aiming to completely change the public's perception of the inherent issues of the sport and reshape the connotation of sportsmanship.
In the aftermath of this protracted storm, the global boxing community and participants in the Olympic Movement should join forces to promote a fair, transparent and efficient management system to ensure that every appearance of boxing at the future Olympic Games will be a showcase of fairness and glory in sports.
Today's boxing program stands at a new starting point. In the face of the past, we should learn from the lessons, and look forward to the future, we should hold the hope that boxing will return to the Olympic arena in a more upright manner, and once again prove its value as an immortal sport in the history of human civilization.