Golovkin Set to Be Elected International Boxing Leader, Will Guide Sport Toward 2028 Los Angeles Olympics
Ex-middleweight world titleholder Gennady Golovkin is slated to be elected president of the global boxing federation and guide boxing as it heads toward the 2028 Olympic Games in LA.
Golovkin, who won Olympic silver in the 2004 Athens Games and achieved the most world title defences in middleweight history, is the only presidential candidate approved by the sport’s autonomous selection committee for the upcoming vote. Consequently, he will assume leadership of World Boxing, which became the governing body for amateur Olympic boxing recently.
This position used to be held by the International Boxing Association, but it was expelled by the International Olympic Committee in the year 2023 following a string of judging, corruption and governance scandals.
In his manifesto, the 43-year-old Golovkin, whose first term runs until 2027, vowed to restore trust in the sport and ensure boxing’s future in the Olympic lineup, beginning at the 2028 LA Olympics.
“As an amateur, I earned with pride a silver medal at the 2004 Athens Olympics, symbolizing Kazakhstan but the principles of integrity and hard work that define Olympic boxing,” he stated. “As a professional, I won numerous world titles, known for my honesty, sportsmanship, and dedication to fair play.
“I am committed to strengthening governance, guaranteeing open finances, developing technology to ensure impartial scoring, and creating more chances for athletes of all genders in every region of the world.”
The IOC directly managed the boxing events at the 2021 Tokyo Games and the Paris 2024 Games. However, after the recent Games were marred by disputes about sex eligibility, it declared a need for a new partner by the 2028 Olympics.
In February, it officially recognized the new boxing federation, which then hosted the 2025 global tournament in Liverpool. For the championships, World Boxing implemented compulsory gender verification, to determine the eligibility of boxers of both sexes, a step which the Olympic committee is also considering for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics.
