AIBA used to stand for Association Internationale de Boxe Amateur and has functioned as the world sanctioning body for boxing in the Olympics since 1946. Today, AIBA is no longer just for amateurs. In 2010, it launched a semi-pro team tournament called the World Series of Boxing (WSB) where fighters earn salaries and compete for clubs. In 2014, AIBA formed AIBA Pro Boxing (APB) to determine the world champion in 10 weight categories where eight fighters in each division are seeded to compete for prize money.
Because of its expanded scope, AIBA ? which has dropped the word ?amateur? but continues to use the same acronym ? is proposing to include professionals at the Rio Olympics. In the men?s division, there are 250 slots for boxing with 102 set aside for WSB and APB qualifiers. AIBA president Dr. Ching Kuo Wu of Taiwan wants the world?s best fighters to be in the ring in Rio regardless of whether they?re amateur or pro.
Last month, AIBA held a meeting to discuss plans for the future in Manchester and Dr. Wu pushed for the inclusion of pros in Rio. There is talk that he has offered Manny Pacquiao a wildcard ticket to compete in the Olympics. The qualifying process is now underway and 130 slots are still available in the men?s category.
For the Philippines, the qualifying windows for men are the ongoing Asia and Oceania Championships in Qian?an, China (the top three finishers in each weight class advance to Rio), the WSB/APB Olympic qualifiers in Sofia, Bulgaria, on May 13-22 and the AIBA World Olympic qualifier in Baku, Azerbaijan on June 7-19. For the women, the qualifying windows are the continental qualifiers (ongoing for Asia and Oceania) and the World Championships in Astana, Kazakhstan, on May 19-27.
A fighter may land a spot in Rio without going through the qualifiers and that?s via the wildcard route where a Tripartite Commission Invitation (TCI) is issued. The Tripartite Commission is made up of a representative from AIBA, the IOC and the Association of National Olympic Committees or ANOC. Dr. Wu has assured Pacquiao a wildcard ticket if he decides to go for it in Rio. The age ceiling for Olympic boxing is 40 so Pacquiao, who is 37, is within the limit.
Former world heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko of Ukraine has said he?d like to compete in Rio. In 1996, he won the gold medal as a superheavyweight at the Atlanta Olympics. The problem is TCI slots are available only in five weight divisions ? bantamweight, lightweight, lightwelterweight, welterweight and middleweight. So the wildcard route isn?t an option for Klitschko unless AIBA makes an exception. Klitschko, who turned 40 last Friday, isn?t eligible to compete in the other qualifying windows because he?s not involved with either the WSB or APB. And he?s not allowed to fight in the continental championships which are strictly for amateurs. Dean’s Corner ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1
Dr. Wu has paved the way for pros to enter the Olympics by removing headgear and applying the 10-point must system in scoring fights. Five judges are chosen to score a fight but only three cards will count as selected by a computer at random. Each fight is for three rounds of three minutes.
The minimum age to fight in the Olympics is 19 so the entry of grizzled pros could potentially create mismatches with scary implications. The Olympic dream of a teenaged simon-pure could turn into a nightmare if and when he battles a veteran like a Pacquiao or Klitschko. AIBA previously said it would allow only pros to fight in the Olympics with 15 or less bouts but that rule apparently has been scuttled.
John Dennen of Boxing News wondered if it?s fair to pit boys against men. ?It seems rough on boxers who have stayed true to their Olympic dream and resisted the temptation to turn professional,? he said. ?Imagine going through four years and the hugely demanding qualification process to find yourself up against, say, Manny Pacquiao in an Olympic quarterfinal. Although scoring changes and the removal of headgear have brought the two codes closer together, tournament boxing is still a very different event to a 12-round title fight. It?s three rounds, so fought at a higher pace, but repeated day after day, so still gruelling and the boxers have to make weight every morning they compete over a two-week period; again very different to the pros where they weigh in a day before.?
English fighter Anthony Fowler, quoted by Dennen, said, ?I?ve stayed amateur for the one reason, for the Olympics. I don?t think it?s fair to let professionals in but either way, they?ll have adapted to eight, 10, 12 rounds. Going back to the three-threes, they?ll all struggle because they?ll be slow off the mark.?
AIBA conceived the idea of embracing pros presumably because it wants a share of the action in the fight-for-pay ranks. Perhaps, AIBA thinks it deserves a slice of the pie since pros are discovered out of the AIBA system so why should only the WBC, WBA, IBF and WBO rake in the loot? Besides, the Olympics are now the playground of pros and amateurs alike. So why make boxing an exception? Wrestling is another sport where pros are not allowed to compete in the Olympics but it?s not in the Rio calendar. Wrestling will be reinstated starting the 2020 Tokyo Games.
There is basis to argue that boxing should remain an exception in the Olympics and exclude pros from participating. Economics is no justification for AIBA to open the floodgates. Because boxing is a combat sport with the potential to cause serious injury, it must be carefully reviewed as to the wisdom of allowing pros and amateurs to compete against each other in the Olympics or any stage.
