The World Boxing Council is going to stand and deliver viz the International Olympic Committee, expressing its respectful but deep concern about professional fighters being mismatched against amateur boxers in next year’s Tokyo Olympics.
At its fifty seventh annual Convention in Cancun the WBC announced it’ll send a letter to the IOC highlighting and underlining the controversial issues of seasoned powerful professionals being allowed to fight against and likely dominate callow amateur youth, with all the risks of injury and the willful crushing of young dreams.
WBC President Mauricio Sulaiman stressed: “A four rounds fighter has very different characteristics from a twelve round champion. There is a very different attitude between amateurs and pros. We at the WBC have no other agenda apart from the protection of the boxers. It is a World Consensus. We prefer to build bridges.”
Lydia Robertson from the Association of Boxing Commissions agrees: “There is no question of the fully developed boxer Vs the amateur.”
The Boxing Federations of the United States, Canada, Japan, Spain, Portugal and Switzerland among others have already underlined their total opposition to pros fighting amateurs in the Olympics.
Earlier this year the IOC removed AIBA’s right to have anything to do with the upcoming. One of AIBA’s legion of mistakes was demanding that amateur competitors in the Rio Olympics not wear head guards. A welter of cuts ensued, ruining many chances to progress.
The WBC is helping develop amateur boxing explaining it’s to foster support, dignity and self esteem. Amateur boxing remains the foundation bedrock of the sport. Most of its greatest stars and superstars had their first steps and then step by step experience in amateur competitions. The vast majority wouldn’t consider taking on or taking to task a youngster in this uneven fashion, clearly remembering the younger version of themselves.
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