World Boxing has named Gennady Golovkin as the chair of its newly established Olympic Commission. The former middleweight world champion has been tasked with aiding the organization in its quest to become the recognized international federation for the sport. Founded in 2023, World Boxing currently boasts 44 members and aims to fill the gap left by the International Boxing Association (IBA), which lost its recognition last year from the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The IOC has yet to include boxing in the Los Angeles 2028 Games programme and has encouraged national boxing federations to form a new global body to replace the IBA.
Golovkin, once regarded as the best pound-for-pound boxer globally and a silver medalist at the 2004 Athens Olympics, was appointed president of Kazakhstan’s National Olympic Committee in 2024. World Boxing stated that Golovkin will collaborate closely with the organization’s leadership to manage its relationship with the IOC and ensure boxing’s reinstatement in the Los Angeles 2028 Games programme.
The commission will expand its membership in the coming weeks to ensure diversity and representation from the global boxing community. World Boxing emphasized that the Olympic Commission’s primary objectives include recruiting new members, ensuring financial stability, and supporting the IOC’s recognition process. Golovkin expressed his commitment to preserving boxing as an Olympic sport, emphasizing his intention to work closely with the IOC on issues related to the sport’s adherence to Olympic values such as honesty, fairness, and transparency.
Golovkin also highlighted his confidence in leveraging his professional athlete experience to foster systemic improvements within World Boxing. He believes that collective efforts will propel boxing’s development, though he acknowledged that significant work remains to be done. Earlier this month, World Boxing announced its plans to host the inaugural world championships in Liverpool next year.
