Gennady Golovkin Set to Be Elected World Boxing President, To Steer Boxing Towards 2028 Los Angeles Olympics
Former world middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin is slated to be chosen as the head of World Boxing and guide boxing as it prepares for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics.
The boxing legend, who earned a silver medal in Athens in 2004 and achieved the most world title defences in middleweight history, is the sole nominee for president endorsed by the sport’s independent vetting panel for Sunday’s election. As a result, he will assume leadership of the boxing governing body, which became the governing body for amateur Olympic boxing recently.
This position was previously occupied by the International Boxing Association, but it was expelled by the IOC in 2023 following a series of judging, corruption and governance scandals.
In his platform, the 43-year-old Golovkin, whose initial term lasts through 2027, vowed to rebuild confidence in the sport and secure boxing’s long-term place in the Olympic lineup, starting with the Los Angeles 2028.
“During my amateur career, I earned with pride 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 stated. “In my pro career, I became a multiple-time unified world champion, known for my honesty, sportsmanship, and dedication to fair play.
“I am committed to strengthening governance, ensuring financial transparency, developing technology to guarantee fair judging, and creating more chances for athletes of all genders in all corners of the globe.”
The International Olympic Committee directly managed the boxing events at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 and the 2024 Paris Olympics. Nonetheless, after the recent Games were overshadowed by rows over sex eligibility, it declared a need for a new partner by 2028.
In the month of February, it officially recognized the new boxing federation, which then hosted the 2025 global tournament in Liverpool. For the championships, the organization implemented compulsory gender verification, to assess qualification of boxers of both sexes, a step which the Olympic committee is also evaluating for LA 2028.
