Golovkin Poised to Become Elected World Boxing President, Will Guide Boxing Towards 2028 Los Angeles Olympics
Ex-middleweight world titleholder Golovkin will be elected president of the global boxing federation and lead the sport as it prepares for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics.
The boxing legend, who earned a silver medal in Athens in 2004 and went on to make the highest number of title defenses in middleweight history, is the only presidential candidate approved by the sport’s independent vetting panel for Sunday’s election. Consequently, he will assume leadership of the boxing governing body, which became the governing body for Olympic-style amateur boxing recently.
This position was previously occupied by the International Boxing Association, but it was expelled by the IOC in the year 2023 following a string of judging, corruption and governance scandals.
In his platform, the boxing veteran, whose initial term lasts through 2027, promised to restore trust in the sport and ensure boxing’s future in the Olympic programme, beginning at the 2028 LA Olympics.
“During my amateur career, I earned with pride a silver medal at the Olympic Games Athens 2004, representing not only Kazakhstan but the values of fair play and discipline that characterize the sport,” he wrote. “As a professional, I won numerous world titles, known for my honesty, sportsmanship, and dedication to clean competition.
“I am committed to strengthening governance, guaranteeing open finances, developing technology to ensure impartial scoring, and expanding opportunities for athletes of all genders in every region of the world.”
The IOC directly managed the boxing events at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 and the 2024 Paris Olympics. However, after the recent Games were marred by rows over sex eligibility, it declared a need for a fresh collaborator by the 2028 Olympics.
In the month of February, it granted recognition to the new boxing federation, which then hosted the 2025 global tournament in Liverpool. For that event, the organization introduced a mandatory sex screening test, to assess qualification of boxers of both sexes, a move that the IOC is also evaluating for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics.
