PYLOS: Boxing was included on Thursday in the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics programme after a unanimous vote from the International Olympic Committee, ending years of doubt over the sport’s Olympic future.

The sport had passed a major hurdle when the IOC Executive Board on Monday recognised World Boxing as the federation to oversee the sport — a step towards the sport’s inclusion in the LA Games — and Thursday’s decision ensured the sport’s Olympic presence would continue.

It ends years of divisions over the way the sport — which has featured at every Olympic Games since 1904, except Stockholm in 1912 as it was barred under a Swedish law — is run.

“I thank you for the approval of having boxing back. We can look forward to a great boxing tournament,” IOC President Thomas Bach, whose 12-year tenure is coming to a close, said.

The boxing competition at the Paris 2024 Games was run by the IOC after it stripped the Russian-led International Boxing Association of recognition in 2023 over its failure to implement reforms on governance and finance.

The IOC had not included the sport on the initial LA 2028 programme, and Bach had warned that boxing’s national federations needed to find a new and “reliable” international partner to replace the IBA.

World Boxing, currently with more than 80 national federations as members, was launched in 2023.

“This is a great day for boxers, boxing and everyone connected with our sport at every level across the world,” said World Boxing President Boris van der Vorst.

“This outcome has been achieved by a massive team effort... and would not have been possible without the hard work and commitment of all of the national federations, boxers, coaches, officials and boxing leaders that have worked together to enable this to happen.

“World Boxing is very grateful to the IOC for the faith they have placed in our organisation by restoring boxing to the programme for LA2028, and I can reassure them that we will do everything in our power to ensure that we operate to the highest standards of governance and transparency and deliver sporting integrity.

“World Boxing understands that being part of the Olympic Games is a privilege and not a right and we are determined to be a trustworthy and reliable partner that will adhere to and uphold the values of the Olympic Movement.”

Former Olympic boxing champions welcomed the green light for the sport’s inclusion in 2028.

Ukraine’s Wladimir Klitschko, who took gold at the 1996 Atlanta Games, said: “This is absolutely fantastic news. Winning Olympic gold was one of the biggest highlights of my career and I would hate to see that opportunity get taken away from future generations.

“The Olympic Games is so important to our sport and to have not been part of it would have been a disaster for boxing and boxers everywhere from the grassroots to the professionals.”

The IOC has said only athletes whose national federations were members of World Boxing by the time of the start of the qualification events for the 2028 Olympics could take part in Los Angeles.

The IOC suspended the IBA, run by Russian businessman Umar Kremlev with close links to the Kremlin, in 2019 over governance, finance, refereeing and ethical issues.

It did not involve the IBA in running the boxing events at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, and in a rare move two years later stripped it of recognition.

Published in Dawn, March 21st, 2025