Istanbul: The women’s boxing world championships will be staged in Istanbul in early December and will provide the same prize pool as the men’s tournament. And this has been made possible by the efforts of the sport’s worldwide governing bodies, which are concerned about gender equality and are working hard to achieve it.
During AIBA president Umar Kremlev’s official visit to Istanbul, an agreement was signed between the sport’s governing organization and the Turkish Boxing Federation that marked beginning of this revolutionary step.
“It is officially confirmed that AIBA Women’s World Boxing Championships will take place in the city of Istanbul, Turkey,” the International Boxing Association (AIBA) stated in a release. “I am glad to announce that the AIBA Women’s World Boxing Championships will be held here in Istanbul. Turkey is a big boxing country and has rich history,” Kremlev said.
The need of attaining gender equality in athletics was emphasized by Kremlev as he put forward, “Gender equality is one of our main goals in the sport of boxing. I am happy to confirm that prize money for the medalists will be exactly the same as for Men’s World Championships. For the first time in AIBA’s 75-year history, medal winners will be rewarded with significant prize money from AIBA. The prize money fund has been set at USD 2.6 million. The prize for first place is USD 100 000. Silver medalists will receive USD 50 000, and both bronzes in each weight category will receive USD 25 000.”
After the national championship, which will be contested in Hisar, Haryana from October 21 to 27, the Indian squad for the main tournament will be chosen. While picking the roster for the world championships, the performances of Indian pugilists would be taken into account.
Officials from AIBA toured sporting sites to assess the viability of hosting the world championships. The AIBA Extraordinary Congress will be scheduled at the World Championships in Turkey, and substantial improvements to the organization will be revealed.
The leaders of the NFs (national federations), boxers and champions of past years will visit Turkey. “AIBA is rapidly changing, we are on the way to big reform. We are doing a lot of work for the sake of National Federations, a large program of assistance and financial support is implemented. We allocate budget and sports equipment, communicate with NFs directly. We will protect our boxers and coaches in every country of the world, AIBA is their home,” Kremlev added.
“I would like to thank the Ministry of Sports of Turkey and Mr. Kremlev for choosing our country and our Federation as a host of such significant event in the world of boxing,” President of the Turkish Boxing Federation Eyüp Gözgeç.
From October 24 to November 6, the men’s world championships will be held in Belgrade, Serbia.
