Speaking at the conference in Lausanne on Tuesday following the IOC Executive Board meeting, IOC Sport Director Kit McConnell said: “The International Boxing Association (IBA) will not be involved in any way if boxing is part of the LA28 Olympic Games. Unless we have a new boxing body working in partnership with the IOC, we will not be able to have boxing in the LA28 programme,” he added.

Following the IOC’s decision to remove itself from the governance of boxing in April 2023, boxing remains in a state of uncertainty. A position it has held for decades. The decision was taken because the IBA did not meet the conditions set by the IOC. The IOC said in a report. An independent body attached to the IOC has administered boxing ever since. For Paris 2024, boxing will be included in the Olympic programme. The qualifying events for the Olympic Games will now be the responsibility of the IOC itself.

The IBA appealed the decision of the IOC. The case has gone through several stages, culminating in an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), which has yet to make a decision. In the absence of a governing body for boxing,  World Boxing is seeking the recognition of the IOC to represent boxing in Olympics.

The desire for such recognition has always been expressed by the new organisation. Since its inauguration in April 2023, and with the recent election of its first President and Board of Directors, it has set its sights on becoming the organisation required by the IOC. Meanwhile, the IBA is awaiting the CAS decision to finally know what will happen to boxing and its inclusion or exclusion from the Olympic programme.

Following MacConnell’s comments, we will have to wait and see what happens after the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, where boxing will be present and the organisation of the competitions will be managed by the IOC itself.

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