New organisation, World Boxing, established to challenge IBA

A new international governing body has been established in amateur boxing in response to ongoing issues within the International Boxing Association (IBA).

Backed by Olympic boxing powerhouses such as the United States and Great Britain, World Boxing is seeking recognition from the International Olympic Committee (IOC), which excluded the IBA from involvement in the Tokyo Games and intends to do the same in Paris next year.

The Irish Athletic Boxing Association have not yet offered their support for the new governing body as to do so will require the backing of it's members and clubs at a vote.

However, the organisation did issue a statement to say it "notes the establishment" of the body and that it does "share the principles" of World Boxing.

Interim IABA CEO, John Nangle, said: "We advised our members in recent months that decisions lie ahead – those decisions will be in the hands of our over 350 clubs, and will guide how Irish boxing develops at home, and on which international stage IABA boxers take to the ring."

The IBA was suspended by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 2019 over governance, finance, refereeing and ethical issues and the two have been at loggerheads ever since.

Boxing is not on the initial programme for the 2028 Los Angeles Games, pending reforms.

World Boxing, which was launched via a virtual press conference on Thursday afternoon, is being led by boxing administrators from federations across the world and says it is committed to keeping boxing "at the heart of the Olympic movement".

A host of countries, including Ireland, boycotted the men's and women's World Championships due to concerns around the governance of the IBA, whose president is Russian Umar Kremlev and whose biggest sponsor is