Pro boxers for Rio Games

LAUSANNE. — Professional boxers can compete at the upcoming Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, the sport’s governing body ruled in a landmark decision yesterday.

Meeting at an extraordinary congress in Lausanne, Switzerland, 88 members of the International Boxing Association (AIBA) voted in favour of the move, while none voted against and four abstained.

The final results of the vote were told to AFP by a senior official within AIBA who requested anonymity as they were not authorised to speak publicly on the subject before the official announcement.

The revolutionary decision is however unlikely to see boxing’s biggest names enter the Olympic ring in Rio.

For most professionals, such as former heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko, it is already too late to take part in a qualifying contest. The last tournament is in Venezuela in July.

There is a rich history of fighters making their name at the Olympics before moving on to have groundbreaking professional careers, including Muhammad Ali, who won gold at the Romes Games in 1960, when he was still known by his birth name, Cassius Clay.

But letting those who have already turned professional fight at the Games has faced some resistance, including from former gold medallist and world heavyweight title holder Lennox Lewis, who said it would be “preposterous” to let professionals into the same ring as amateurs.

AIBA president Wu Ching-kuo has aggressively supported the move, arguing that the distinction between amateurs and professionals had become increasingly arbitrary.

He also argued that letting the sport’s best athletes compete at such a showcase event would raise boxing’s profile.

The admission of professional basketball to the Olympics in time for the 1992 Games in Barcelona has helped make men’s basketball one of the most hotly-anticipated events of the Games.

But AIBA will have to answer questions about its dope testing policy in order to satisfy the International Olympic Committee, which is embroiled in a series of doping scandals and is battling to keep drug cheats out of the Rio Games. — AFP.