By: Sean Crose
Earlier this month, WBA, IBF and WBO heavyweights champion Oleksandr Usyk signed with Saudi Arabia’s Skill Challenge Promotion. Obviously, this means that Usyk plans to fight in the Middle Eastern Kingdom as he did last year when he beat former protégé Anthony Joshua in Jeddah. Indeed, many major fights have been staged in Saudi Arabia in recent years, such as Joshua’s rematch with Andy Ruiz and Jake Paul’s recent defeat to Tommy Fury. Obviously, Saudi Arabia is engaging the fighting game. However, the country’s reputation raises some ethical questions.
“Saudi Arabia spends billions of dollars organizing major entertainment, cultural and sporting events to deflect the country’s poor human rights record,” the human rights organization stated. Human Rights Watch. “Saudi Arabia has announced important reforms, but the suppression of independent civil society and critical voices hinder any reform efforts.” Based on personnelSaudi Arabia’s government is not nearly as open to divergent opinions as it is to high-profile wars.
“Many human rights activists and dissidents are in prison or on trial for their peaceful criticism,” the organization stated. Furthermore, personnel added that “authorities have not held senior officials accountable for the 2018 murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.” This is clearly not the kind of fee on which a good reputation is based. Therefore, it is not surprising that some people are not entirely comfortable with the premium boxing cards that are on sale in Saudi Arabia.
Of course, boxing is not the only sport suitable for Saudi Arabia. The PGA recently linked up with Saudi-backed LIV Golf. This title pairing has led to much criticism. Prominent golfer Tom Watson wrote: “I am still waiting for Saudi Arabia’s acknowledgment of their role in the 9/11 attacks, which resulted in the deaths of 3,000 innocent US citizens. “I support the unity of the 9/11 families and their efforts in releasing supporting documents to the United States Government.” Although professional boxing does not have an organization as prominent as the PGA in professional golf, questions of ethics and correctness are still being raised.
Furthermore, boxing itself has had anything but a stellar reputation over the years. Whether it’s financial mischief, poor judgment, or even criminal involvement, the sport’s reputation as the sport’s red light district is sad. Also notable is the fact that, overall, most countries have more flaws than they total. However, whatever decisions boxing’s power players are making, one can at least hope those decisions are made in good conscience.
