UK Boxing
Olympic boxing conflict erupts as two judges who ‘failed integrity tests’ officiate in Paris
Published
4 months agoon
Another boxing row has broken out at the Olympics after two judges who allegedly failed “integrity tests” officiated at the fights. Emil Gurbanaliyev and Sergei Krutasov judged more than 20 events in Paris, three years after they were banned from the AIBA World Championships in Serbia.
Gurbanaliyev and Krutasov, from Azerbaijan and Russia respectively, have been selected as technical judges by the Paris Boxing Unit (PBU) for the 2024 Games.
This comes after AIBA was stripped of its recognition last year due to discrepancies over finances, governance, ethics, judging and scoring.
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Times reported that both men were randomly selected for integrity testing by Professor Richard McLaren, who exposed state-sponsored doping in Russia, in October 2021. Both Gurbanaliyev and Krutasov raised concerns with their responses to the tests, leading to their withdrawal from the world championships.
However, the IOC said it had no insight into McLaren’s findings. It also confirmed that both judges had passed their own background checks and the commission’s vetting processes.
Between them, the pair have adjudicated more than 20 fights in Paris, across weight classes, and were both part of the five-person panel that controversially ruled that Irishwoman Daina Moorehouse lost to Frenchwoman Wassila Lkhadiri on Thursday.
“I don’t know what the judges were looking at,” Moorehouse said afterwards. But none of that played a part in the four first-round defeats by British boxers that left Team GB bosses furious.
McLaren himself was quoted as saying: “We have a tool called Protect Sport that works using voice analysis. Emil Gurbanaliyev was tested in October 2021 in Belgrade and returned three high-risk results on the relevant questions we asked about match manipulation.
“We utilize this tool and then we continue to ask the person questions. We were not satisfied with his answers and he was withdrawn from this World Cup.
“Sergei Krutasov was also tested. I was present and saw what was happening. He also assessed high risk in all three answers to our questions.”
The dispute is the latest controversy to plague boxing at the Summer Games, as organizers grapple with the intense fallout from allowing two women to compete despite previously being barred from competing because of elevated testosterone levels.
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UK Boxing
Jake Paul was unaware of Mike Tyson’s sedate health problems before the fight
Published
3 hours agoon
November 21, 2024Jake Paul and his team reportedly had no idea about Mike Tyson’s health concerns ahead of his boxing fight, even though the heavyweight icon revealed he feared for his life.
Last Friday, Tyson, 58, returned to the professional ring for the first time since 2005 to face social media star-turned-boxer Jake Paul. In the fight in Texas, “The Problem Child” won by unanimous decision, although he failed to land any knockout blows during the fight.
CompuBox post-fight statistics showed that Tyson landed just 18 punches over eight rounds, landing only four of 13 robust body punches and missing none of his five jabs.
After his defeat, Tyson, a former world heavyweight champion, confessed on X that he “almost died” before the fight.
“It’s one of those situations where you lost but you still won. I’m grateful for last night. I don’t regret stepping into the ring for the last time. I almost died in June. I had 8 blood transfusions. I lost half my blood and 25 pounds in my body to the hospital and had to fight to get well to fight, so my kids saw me go head to head and finish 8 rounds with a talented fighter half my age in front of a packed Dallas Cowboy Stadium, that’s an experience that no man has ever experienced. the thank you.”
Paul’s business associate, Nakisa Bidarian, revealed on “The Ariel Helwani Show” that he was unaware of Tyson’s health issues prior to the fight, stating: “That sentiment he expressed in that post was never shared with us. We have a doctor’s opinion reports that we talked to doctors, we never thought about it… he was close to losing his life, or whatever it was that he said in the post.
“I appreciate that there was a lot of emotion leading up to this event and I appreciate how he reflected the next day on what he had been through, but I can say unequivocally that every report we received from his team, every conversation we had, was his doctor’s opinion. “there was nothing other than to say he would be 100 percent fit to compete starting in tardy August and early September.”
Tyson’s fight with Paul was initially scheduled for July, but was delayed due to Tyson’s health problems on the plane. Tyson spoke about the terrifying experience ahead of the postponed match, revealing: “I was in the bathroom vomiting blood. I asked the doctor: “Will I die?” He said, “We have options.” Options? I couldn’t believe it. I had about eight blood transfusions.
“The doctor said I had lost half of my blood. I almost died. I lost 25 pounds in 11 days. I couldn’t eat. Only fluids. Every time I went to the bathroom it smelled of tar. It didn’t even smell… — It was disgusting.
“It threw me off [when I continued training]. All my coordination, stamina, everything was hectic on the way back. I was already at the top. I could fight him that day. Now I have to start from scratch. I just don’t give up. Sometimes I’m an asshole. I am advertising***. If I haven’t outlived my enemies, I’ve turned them into friends.”
UK Boxing
Eddie Hearn names four potential future opponents for Callum Smith
Published
7 hours agoon
November 21, 2024Eddie Hearn has mentioned four names as Callum Smith’s potential big-money fights in 2025, ahead of his return to the ring next weekend.
Smith hasn’t boxed since his seventh-round defeat of Artur Beterbiev in their unified airy heavyweight world title fight in January, and many – including Hearn – had doubts whether the Liverpudlian would fight again.
However, this week it was announced that “Mundo” would return for round eight on the undercard Sunny Edwards vs Gal Yafai November 30, and an opponent has not yet been announced.
Hearn stated that once the cobwebs are cleared next week, the former super middleweight world champion will go straight into the substantial fight in 2025.
I speak at Matchroom Boxing YouTube channelSmith’s longtime promoter teased domestic feuds with Joshua Buatsi, Anthony Yard and Lyndon Arthur, as well as a clash with Dmitry Bivol.
“He will come back after an eight-round fight, get rid of the cobwebs after the Beterbiev fight and then he will jump straight into action!
“Joshua Buatsi, Anthony Yarde, Lyndon Arthur, even Dmitry Bivol.
“Any of these great opportunities at 175 pounds.
“Just one little run next week and then whoever wants.
“I’m excited. Sometimes I feel like I’ve rejoined the stable.
“We have been with Callum since his professional debut, so I am looking forward to his performance in Birmingham and then he will have a substantial fight in 2025.”
The world is back 💥 @callumsmith23
We’re back in the ring in Birmingham ready to get back into the mix 👊 #EdwardsYafai survive @daznboxingNovember 30 pic.twitter.com/Hx5AcVFmXc
— Matchroom Boxing (@MatchroomBoxing) November 17, 2024
Smith looked like a disruptive force in the airy heavyweight division before losing to Beterbiev, following two previous fights that saw victories over Lenin Castillo and Mathieu Bauderlique.
His only other loss was against a pound-for-pound star Canelo Alvarez in 2020and the 34-year-old will no doubt still feel he has enough energy to pull off a substantial win next year.
UK Boxing
A doctor is calling for a major change to boxing rules as a direct result of the Mike Tyson-Jake Paul fight
Published
11 hours agoon
November 21, 2024A German doctor has argued that athletes should not be allowed to box after the age of 40, following Mike Tyson’s penniless fight against Jake Paul earlier this month. “Iron” Mike entered the ring as a professional for the first time since his defeat to Kevin McBride in 2005 on November 15, so he was already 58 years aged.
The fight with 27-year-old Paul went exactly as many viewers expected: “Problem Child” tore apart the former heavyweight champion over the course of eight rounds before getting his hand raised via unanimous decision. Thousands of fans left AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, before the fight was over to protest the exhibition, which pitted a juvenile, up-and-coming fighter against a much older and slower opponent.
Although both men emerged from the fight virtually unscathed thanks to the fact that there was no knockout, Professor Walter Wagner called for a ban on people over 40 years of age entering the squared circle for safety reasons. I’m talking to BILDthe doctor said: “As a rule, you should not be allowed into the ring after the age of 40.”
He added: “If you are not able to protect yourself enough in the ring, i.e. defend yourself, it can lead to stern health consequences. And the athlete’s health should be the top priority.”
Tyson was ultimately able to defend himself over the course of the eight-round fight, but he never really looked like winning the fight. The former WBA, WBC and IBF heavyweight champion came out swinging in the first fight, looking to catch up with Paul and finish the job quickly, but nothing landed.
Visibly tired by the third round, Paul calmly began attacking Tyson, defeating the legend of the game 80-72, 79-73, 79.73, even though everything was already said and done. Although Wagner seems to care about the safety of the fighters, his requests will unfortunately go unheeded by many combat sports fans.
This is because some of the greatest fighting champions in the world managed to pick up belts in their weight classes after the age of 40. George Foreman won the WBA and IBF heavyweight titles at the age of 45 with a 1994 knockout over Michael Moorer, and Vitali Klitschko still held the WBC belt at the age of 42.
Bernard Hopkins was also still fighting for titles at the age of 51, facing Joe Smith Jr. for the WBC International lightweight heavyweight title in 2016 – although he lost by eighth-round TKO.
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