Boxing Federation leaders believe in the potential for growth of adaptive boxing

International Boxing Day is being celebrated worldwide within the boxing community as leaders of the sport gather in Belgrade, Serbia, two months ahead of the AIBA men’s world championships.

Attempting to put their best foot forward and ultimately satisfy the reforms requested of the embattled federation by the International Olympic Committee with the target of once again governing Olympic competition for Paris 2024, AIBA president Umar Kremlev and secretary general István Kovács addressed media in Belgrade and virtually on Friday.

“We want boxing to publicly be developed and such development creates champions which breeds the mass interest to boxing and that’s a circle to help people love this sport that we love,” Kremlev, said about the mission of International Boxing Day on August 27th.

Kremlev, who was elected as the new president of AIBA in December of 2020, noted that there are more than 200 recognized national boxing federations that still depend upon the organization despite its current suspension by the IOC.

Questioned about the significance of the International Paralympic Committee’s launch of the ‘WeThe15’ movement and future adaptive sport programs within boxing, Kremlev said it is a work in progress.

“Of course, we will help people with different disabilities – we’re now gathering statistics to organize inclusive championships for them to participate,” Kremlev said, responding to Around the Rings.

“Our main goal now is to gather information about what kind of limited abilities these people have and how many sportsmen and sportswomen there are who want to train.

“I believe it is our task to create all the conditions for them and we will do that just like we organize conditions for kids who want to train and box.

“AIBA is reforming its organization and those new parts of it will be included,” said the Russian AIBA president.

AIBA secretary general and Olympic champion Kovács says the sport does not discriminate against anyone while referencing a video and movement in Scotland for wheelchair boxing. The Hungarian two-time world champion also advised that there still has not been substantial demand to organize adaptive boxing tournaments.

“We don’t have restrictions - everybody can step into the ring: male, female, old, young, fat, Para athletes or healthy athletes,” Kovács said.

“We have some para athletes – I don’t know if it’s sad news or bad news, but at the moment we don’t have so many to create competitions, but we are giving all the support for everybody who wants to try the sport and become a boxer,” he said.

Seoul 1988 Olympic silver medalist and former pro boxer Roy Jones Jr. was also present in Belgrade for the day’s festivities. The retired U.S. fighter cited one particular impaired individual that he knows who has benefited greatly from the sport of boxing.

“I know a few autistic kids that are boxing right now, one in particular in Washington D.C.,” Jones Jr. said. “Such a good kid and boxing has done so much more than any other sport that he has done, because it is an individual sport.

“He gets individual attention and this gives him an opportunity as some of these autistic kids have a hard time being in groups. They can do better when they isolate themselves to a particular thing and because he can isolate himself to boxing, boxing offers him everything.

“Boxing is a great place for people with any kind of illness because it gives them an opportunity to deal with some of these illnesses – I’m so glad we can help these people.”

Follow Brian on Twitter - @Brian_Pinelli