The sport of boxing has been placed "on hold" for the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, according to the International Olympic Committee [IOC]. Boxing, which has been a part of the Olympics since 1920, will still be a part of the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, France.
On Wednesday a special meeting was held, where the executive board of International Olympic Committee (IOC) recommended withdrawing the recognition of the International Boxing Association (IBA).
Two-time Olympic champion Claressa Shields, from Flint, Michigan, is proud of Team USA’s Olympic boxing medalists and the whole USA Boxing squad, which featured five female participants for the first time. The only American boxer ever to win back-to-back Olympic gold medals, Shields stood atop the medal podium at the first-ever Olympic Games to feature women’s boxing in 2012, before duplicating the feat at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. The reigning middleweight Olympic champion was pleased with the United States’ performance at the Tokyo Olympics, which featured three silver medals and a bronze in the first appearance of a women’s welterweight competition.
After the decision was read and Andy Cruz was declared Olympic gold medalist in the lightweight division, he broke into a Michael Jackson dance routine in the middle of the ring before doing the “rock-a-baby” motion popularized by NBA star Russell Westbrook. It was part celebration, part taunting of his vanquished opponent Keyshawn Davis.
Galal Yafai said he was overwhelmed after winning the flyweight gold medal at the Olympic Games in Tokyo and admitted he never really thought he would become an Olympic champion.
Richard Torrez Jr. was the last man standing for the United States men’s team but unable to end a 17-year Gold medal drought. The 22-year-old super heavyweight representative for the United States came up short in his Olympic Gold bid following a points loss to number-one seed Bakhodir Jalolov in the final bout of Tokyo Olympics competition Sunday afternoon at Kokugikan Arena. Jalolov won by scores of 30-26, 30-26, 29-27, 29-27 and 29-27 to become the first Uzbek to win Gold in the super heavyweight division.
Lauren Price was tasked with avenging a past amateur defeat in order to win out the women’s middleweight division. The number-one seed rose to the occasion, earning a three-round unanimous decision over China’s Li Qian to provide Great Britain with its second Gold medal in the Toyko Olympics. Scores were 30-27 on four cards and 29-28 on the fifth, all in favor of Price in their middleweight final Sunday afternoon at Kokugikan Arena.
Keyshawn Davis entered the Tokyo Olympics with the best shot at becoming the first American male boxer since 2004 to bring home a Gold medal. That goal fell one fight short, to an old amateur rival. Davis will take home a Silver medal for the U.S., following a decision in favor of Cuba’s Andy Cruz in their men’s lightweight division. Davis won 29-28 on one card, trumped by scores of 29-28 on four cards in favor of Cruz, who is now 4-0 versus Davis following his Gold medal haul Sunday afternoon at Kokugikan Arena in Tokyo.
Ireland now has its second Olympic Gold medal in the women’s lightweight division. Kellie Anne Harrington overcame a stiff challenge from Brazil’s Beatriz Ferreira in the Tokyo Olympics women’s lightweight final Sunday afternoon at Kokugikan Arena. Harrington won by scores of 30-27, 30-27, 29-28, 29-28 and 29-28 to become the first Irish boxer in the division to medal since Katie Taylor went the distance in 2012, the first year of competition for women’s boxing in the Olympics.
An hour after watching her Tokyo Olympics teammate fall short in her own Gold medal fight, Busenaz Surmeneli was able to provide the history her nation sought at the start of the day. Surmeneli became the first ever Turkish boxer—male or female—to win an Olympic Gold medal, doing so after outpointing China's Gu Hong in the women's welterweight final. Surmeneli rode a strong round two all the way to the finish line, winning by scores of 29-27 from three judges to overrule a pair of 28-28 cards.