Boxing will be present at the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, following ongoing disputes over its management. The president of the International Olympic Committee, Thomas Bach, announced that the executive board approved its inclusion in the program. The final approval will be ratified by the IOC assembly this week.
The Russian Olympic Committee has been exiled by the IOC, as has the IBA of boxing. The arrival of World Boxing as the new governing body of boxing has been vital for the reintegration of the sport into the Olympic Games. It is expected that boxers from around the world will be able to compete if their national federations are recognized by World Boxing.
Boxing leaders in the United States and the United Kingdom founded World Boxing in 2023. Since then, it has added key countries like India and China to its membership, now counting more than 80 national federations. However, nations like Russia, Spain, and some African countries have still not joined.
The IOC will allow national boxing bodies time to change their allegiance to World Boxing before the qualifying events begin. The conflict between the IBA and the IOC has persisted since the former's suspension in 2019, with disputes over governance and the integrity of the matches.
Bach emphasized the importance of following the rules of the Olympic Movement and the Olympic Charter. Some Russian athletes competed as verified neutrals at the Paris 2024 Summer Games, and a similar scenario is expected at the Milan-Cortina d'Ampezzo Winter Games next February.
The Russian Olympic Committee was excluded from receiving part of the revenue from the Olympic Games due to territorial violations in Ukraine. Bach stated that the decision to return to competition is in the hands of the Russian body, although contacts have been maintained at the working level.
