COSTA NAVARINO, March 20, 2025 - The 144th IOC Session has today - the second day of its meeting in Costa Navarino, Greece - approved the inclusion of boxing on the sports programme of the Olympic Games Los Angeles 2028 (LA28). 

There were no “nos” or abstentions. The IOC members unanimously accepted this proposal which was made by the IOC Executive Board on Monday following the provisional recognition of World Boxing as the International Federation (IF) within the Olympic Movement governing the sport of boxing at world level.

"I thank you for the approval of having boxing back. We can look forward to a great boxing tournament," IOC President Thomas Bach said.

Following the expulsion of the International Boxing Association (IBA) from the Olympic Movement, the sport was originally left off the LA 2028 programme, with the IOC insisting that its return would be dependent on the recognition of a new global governing body.

The IBA was expelled in 2023 over its failure to implement reforms on governance and finance. World Boxing, which was launched in 2023, had only 37 members at the conclusion of the Paris Olympics but now boasts 88 national federations.

While at loggerheads with the IBA, the IOC organised the boxing competitions at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 and the 2024 Games Paris.

The sport of boxing has a long tradition at the Olympic Games. It was first included in the modern Olympic Games in 1904, and has been contested at every edition since then except for Stockholm 1912, due to a local law banning the sport at the time.