Gennady Golovkin Poised to Become Elected World Boxing President, To Steer Sport Towards Olympic Games in LA 2028
Ex-middleweight world titleholder Gennady Golovkin will be elected president of World Boxing and guide boxing as it prepares for the 2028 Olympic Games in LA.
Golovkin, who earned a silver medal in the 2004 Athens Games and went on to make the highest number of title defenses in the history of the middleweight division, is the only presidential candidate approved by the sport’s independent vetting panel for Sunday’s election. As a result, he will assume leadership of World Boxing, which became the governing body for amateur Olympic boxing this year.
That role was previously occupied by the International Boxing Association, but it was banished by the IOC in the year 2023 following a series of controversies involving judging, corruption, and management.
In his manifesto, the boxing veteran, whose initial term runs until 2027, vowed to rebuild confidence in the sport and ensure boxing’s future in the Olympic lineup, beginning at the Los Angeles 2028.
“During my amateur career, I earned with pride a second-place finish at the Olympic Games Athens 2004, representing not only Kazakhstan but the principles of integrity and hard work that characterize the sport,” he stated. “In my pro career, I became a multiple-time unified world champion, known for my integrity, respect, and commitment to clean competition.
“I am dedicated to strengthening governance, ensuring financial transparency, developing technology to ensure impartial scoring, and creating more chances for men and women in every region of the world.”
The IOC directly managed the boxing events at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 and the Paris 2024 Games. Nonetheless, after last year’s Olympics were marred by rows over gender eligibility, it declared a need for a fresh collaborator by 2028.
In the month of February, it officially recognized World Boxing, which then hosted the 2025 global tournament in Liverpool. For the championships, World Boxing implemented compulsory gender verification, to determine the eligibility of male and female athletes, a move that the IOC is also considering for LA 2028.
