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Tokyo 2020 Olympic medalists, Lauren Price and Richard Torrez Jr, will represent Athletes on the Interim Executive Board of a new international boxing federation
LAUSANNE, Switzerland, April 13, 2023 – A gathering of Boxing leaders from National Federations around the world has formed a new, non-profit international federation, World Boxing, which aims to ensure that boxing remains at the center of the Olympic movement.
World Boxing was created to address lingering issues surrounding the existing international governing body of Olympic-style boxing, which has failed to address the IOC’s longstanding concerns about the integrity of the Olympic sport. The integrity, governance, transparency and financial management of the sport have put the future of boxing as an Olympic sport in doubt.
World Boxing will seek recognition from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and plan to work constructively and collaboratively to develop a roadmap that will help maintain boxing’s continued place in the program. Olympic competition.
World Boxing will put the interests of the boxers at the center of decision-making and the way it operates will be underpinned by rigorous governance practices designed to create an athletic structure. sustainable and inclusive global, where fighters from all over the world can compete knowing that the integrity of sport is guaranteed and competition is fair.
As part of its announcement to launch World Boxing, five commitments were made detailing its priorities for the sport, their commitment to boxers and the organization’s goals. organization as an organization. The five commitments are:
· World boxing will keep boxing at the heart of the Olympic movement
· World Boxing will ensure that the interests of the boxers come first
· World boxing will bring integrity in sport and fair competitions
· World boxing will create a competition structure designed for the best interests of the fighters
· World Boxing will operate under the strongest governance standards and transparent financial management
World Boxing will ensure that athletes’ views are represented at the highest level in the decision-making process and there is one male and female boxer (with voting rights) on the Executive Board which will be elected by the members of the Board of Directors. membership at the organization’s inaugural Congress in November 2023.
In the period between the launch of World Boxing and the inaugural Games, it will be led by an Interim Executive Board consisting of representatives from boxing organizations in Germany, England, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Philippines, Sweden and the United States. It will be overseen daily 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 athletes represented on the Interim Executive Board of World Boxing are the middleweight gold medalist, Lauren Price from Wales of Tokyo 2020 and the super heavyweight silver medalist of the United States. Ky, Richard Torrez Jr.
To ensure that boxers have a strong voice in shaping the work of World Boxing, two athlete representatives on the Executive Board will be supplemented by a Committee of Athletes, consisting of three men. and three women, will be responsible for representing boxers’ views around the world and providing advice, guidance and opinion for World Boxing.
Lauren Price said: “From the age of 8, I had the ambition to compete in the Olympic Games and when I was studying 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’m a professional athlete now, I don’t think anything will compare to what I did at the Olympics.
“Being in the Olympics is life changing and I can’t imagine an Olympics without boxing. It provides a great platform for the sport and for the boxers. Without it, boxers would suffer and the sport would be ruined, so something needs to be done to ensure boxing continues to be a part of the Olympic Games.”
Richard Torrez Jr added: “Winning a medal for my country at Tokyo 2020 is 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 catastrophic for the sport. It is extremely important that boxing remains part of the Olympic Games and I will do everything I can to make sure that happens.”
World Boxing will be led by an Executive Board and a President, who will be elected by members at the organization’s inaugural Congress in November 2023. Membership applications are open and open. Many National Federations, around the world, have expressed their interest in participating in the World Boxing Tournament. run for election.
In preparation for the inaugural Games, World Boxing will be led by an Interim Executive Committee consisting of representatives from eight countries of four nationalities. It consists of one male and one female Athletes Representative and one Interim Secretary-General, who does not have voting rights.
Current members of the Interim Executive Committee include:
· Matthew Holt, CEO, GB Boxing
· Tyson Lee, President, United States Boxing
Karin Mattsson, Board Member, Swedish Boxing Federation
Michael Mueller, General Secretary, German Boxing Association
Karina Picson, Boxing Official, Philippines
· Lauren Price, Athlete Representative
· Richard Torrez Jr, Athlete Representative
Boris van der Vorst, President, Dutch Boxing Federation
· Keith Walker, President, Boxing New Zealand
Simon Toulson, Interim Secretary General (no voting rights)
Matthew Holt, CEO, GB Boxing explains: “It is vital that boxing continues to be at the heart of the Olympic movement and to achieve this we need to re-establish a relationship of trust between the people. governing the sport and all its stakeholders. Boxing World aims to do this by creating a financially transparent organization with strong governance structures that deliver sports integrity and fair competition, and act for the interests of the boxers and the sport.”
Tyson Lee, President, USA Boxing, said: “The loss of Olympic status represents an existential threat to boxing that will have a negative impact on the sport at all levels from the clubs. junior sets to the higher levels of professional boxing. World Boxing aims to prevent this. It will create a sporting structure designed to fit the best interests of the boxers and ensure they continue to have the opportunity to compete in the Olympic Games.”
Boris van der Vorst, President, Dutch Boxing, added: “World boxing represents a union of people who are only concerned with creating a better future for boxers and ensuring This sport continues to be an important part of the Olympic Games. Honesty and integrity will be at the heart of World Boxing, underpinned by strong governance procedures and has incorporated the principle of independent, third-party oversight into its constitution to ensure it. have strict, enforceable governance structures that promote transparent and ethical decision-making. ”
The World Boxing Regulations have been developed after extensive research into best practice in global sport governance and cover all aspects of World Boxing operations including: protection; the health and safety of the boxer; arbitration and expertise; competitive manipulation; election format; codes of conduct, equality and inclusion. The statutes of World Boxing and all its rules and policies are publicly available on its website at www.worldboxing.org.
At the heart of all of this is the principle of independent, third-party enforcement and oversight that World Boxing will ensure by working with a leading independent provider of matchmaking services. sports-specific awards and arbitrations, Sport Resolutions, to create an ethics and third-party judiciary. procedures are completely separate from the organization and will monitor any potential problems and disputes.
To ensure sporting integrity, World Boxing competitions will also be subject to independent third-party supervision with the appointment of external assessors who will monitor and report on all aspects of competition management including refereeing and evaluation as well as the appointment and roles of officials.
This operational structure reflects the approach of the IOC Boxing Task Force (BTF) for Tokyo 2020 as Price Waterhouse Coopers (PwC) was appointed to provide independent review and review of referees and judges. prices at qualifying events and Olympic tournaments.
It will ensure that all World Boxing competitions are under independent third-party supervision and provide fair competition for fighters whose outcome is determined solely by their performance in the ring. .
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