Golovkin elected as president of World Boxing
Former boxing world champion Gennady Golovkin says he wants to restore trust in the sport after being elected president of World Boxing.
Kazakhstan's Golovkin, 43, stood unopposed for the position in a vote at World Boxing's annual congress in Rome on Sunday and succeeds Dutchman Boris van der Vorst.
Boxing's place at the 2028 Olympics had been in doubt before the formation of World Boxing, which earned provisional recognition by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in February and will run the competition at the LA Games.
The IOC ran the boxing competition at the 2020 and 2024 Olympics after the sport's previous governing body, the International Boxing Association (IBA), was expelled from the Olympic movement.
Golovkin has now vowed to restore boxing's long-term place at future Olympic Games.
"I am here to fight for something important – the future of boxing itself," he told the World Boxing congress, when presenting his case to be elected president.
"With your help I will do everything to restore trust in World Boxing. Together we can achieve full IOC recognition and secure our place not only at Los Angeles 2028 but at all future Olympics."
Golovkin won the Olympic silver medal in the middleweight division at the 2004 Games in Athens.
He also held world and Asian titles as an amateur before stepping up to the professional ranks, in which he held a middleweight world title and is widely regarded as one of the fiercest competitors of his generation.
Although not officially retired, he has not fought since losing the third fight of his trilogy with Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez in September 2022.
The only blemishes on his 45-fight record are two defeats by Mexico's Alvarez following a controversial draw in their first encounter that many believed Golovkin had won.
He told the World Boxing congress his presidency would be built around four key points – putting athletes first, integrity, innovation, and financial stability and development.
The IOC suspended the IBA in 2019 over governance, financial, refereeing and ethical concerns.
"This is about unity," said Golovkin, as he expanded on his blueprint for the future of boxing as an Olympic sport.
"Today we take a big step forward. We must be a federation that athletes can believe in and one the Olympic family can trust."
Van der Vorst was elected in 2023 but chose to step aside and did not seek a second term.
