Gennady Golovkin Set to Be Elected World Boxing President, To Steer Boxing Towards Olympic Games in LA 2028
Former world middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin will be elected president of World Boxing and guide boxing as it heads toward the 2028 Olympic Games in LA.
Golovkin, who earned a silver medal in the 2004 Athens Games and went on to make the most world title defences in middleweight history, is the sole nominee for president approved by the sport’s independent vetting panel for the upcoming vote. Consequently, he will assume leadership of World Boxing, which was established as the authority for Olympic-style amateur boxing this year.
This position was previously occupied by the International Boxing Association, but it was expelled by the IOC in 2023 following a string of controversies involving judging, corruption, and management.
In his manifesto, the boxing veteran, whose first term runs until 2027, vowed to rebuild confidence in the sport and ensure boxing’s future in the Olympic programme, starting with the Los Angeles 2028.
“As an amateur, I proudly won a silver medal at the Olympic Games Athens 2004, representing not only Kazakhstan but the principles of integrity and hard work that define Olympic boxing,” he wrote. “As a professional, I won numerous world titles, known for my integrity, respect, and commitment to clean competition.
“I am dedicated to strengthening governance, guaranteeing open finances, advancing tech solutions to guarantee fair judging, and expanding opportunities for men and women 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 rows over gender eligibility, it declared a need for a new partner by 2028.
In the month of February, it granted recognition to the new boxing federation, which then ran the 2025 world championships in the city of Liverpool. For that event, the organization implemented compulsory gender verification, to determine the eligibility of boxers of both sexes, a step which the IOC is also evaluating for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics.
