Boxing will be included in the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, Thomas Bach, President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), said on Monday, ahead of a meeting of the committee, at which the issue will be put to the vote.
Bach, who will officially step down as the head of the committee at the meeting, to be held on Thursday, expressed great confidence in the outcome of the vote, which he described as a formality. He said boxers worldwide can be certain that they will be able to participate in the 2028 Olympics.
Late last month, the IOC decided to provisionally entrust the organisation of boxing at the 2028 Olympic Games to World Boxing.
World Boxing was established in April last year with the aim of ensuring boxing’s future as an Olympic sport after the international boxing federation, IBA, was no longer recognised due to financial mismanagement, administrative issues, and ethical concerns.
At the Tokyo and Paris Olympics, the IOC took charge of organising the boxing tournament due to the IBA’s suspension. With the IOC unwilling to do so for a third time, the future of the sport, which has been a constant presence at the Olympics since 1920, was under threat.
So far, 78 national federations, including Belgium’s, have joined World Boxing. These 78 countries provided 62% of the boxers and 58% of the medal winners at the last Olympics.
