A press conference was held at the Rixos Tersane Hotel in Istanbul, Turkey, by the International Boxing Association (IBA), in which the immediate objectives of this organisation were set out. The IBA, which for years ran Olympic boxing, has been relegated by World Boxing, after being tasked by the International Olympic Committee
The International Boxing Association, led by Uman Kremlev, wants to remain even more closely linked to pugilism, organising not only elite amateur boxing championships, but also in other categories such as Youth, Junior, Schoolboys, etc.
The event was attended by prominent professional boxers, such as the four-weight world champion Terence Crawford, former world heavyweight champion Tyson Fury, the legendary Roy Jones, as well as other important fighters such as WBA champion Rolando Romero, Conor Benn, Ben Whitaker, Derek Chisora, Shannon Briggs and many more.
Tyson Fury has made it clear that he is not retiring, that he will return if he is made a good offer.“Show me the money,” he told the IBA president. He would be willing to return as soon as possible, even after the summer against Anthony Joshua, for a title of that organization. He was seen training in Istanbul and looks in good shape. “I always come back,” so he could be in the ring much sooner than expected.
Meanwhile, Terence Crawford, who on September 13 will try to snatch the four super middleweight crowns from Saul “Canelo” Alvarez, did not want to make explicit statements: “We will see everything in the ring,” he said.
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In the amateur field, IBA will continue to organize world and regional championships, such as European or Asian championships, in parallel with those supervised by World Boxing, but with the difference of the large financial prizes promised by IBA, which will surely double the competitions for the best amateur boxers
The aim of IBA is to create spectacular galas that surpass those that can be organized by any other entity. In this type of event, both amateur and professional boxers who have not fought a certain number of fights in this field may participate. At the end of the year, the world championships will be held in the United Arab Emirates, with some 30 top-level fighters per weight category.
The IBA is also breaking into bare-knuckle boxing with major changes in the direction of this discipline, new rules and better protection for the fighters. They are also creating IBA Boxing Gyms, high-end sports complexes, in various locations around the world, as well as interesting games such as the IBA Boxing Game, or an elegant line of sportswear.
As for professional boxing, IBA is going to develop IBA Pro, trying to collaborate with the four world organizations, WBC, WBA, IBF and WBO, but it has not been very clear the direction they will take firmly in the professional field, without ruling out that they end up acting as a professional organization. They are coming in with a lot of economic strength and the ultimate goal could be very ambitious.
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