The International Boxing Association may have been stripped of being the organizing body for Olympic boxing, but it hasn’t given up on opening their wallets to gain attention from the competition.
The Russia-based organization formerly known as AIBA – which the International Olympic Committee has since replaced with the upstart World Boxing over alleged ethical, financial and governance issues related to the IBA’s handling of competitions – has announced its promise to award prize money to boxers who compete at the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.
This follows after the organization made a similar promise in 2024, though reports of which boxers received prize money remains scant.
The IBA claims it awarded over $3 million to boxers, from quarterfinalists up, with $100,000 going to gold medalists, coaches and national federations.
The IBA, which continues to dabble in amateur and professional boxing, despite their ban, voiced its intent to present itself as an alternative to the IOC model of development.
"If by the 2028 Olympics the IOC does not come to its senses and change its strategy in the interest of protecting athletes, the IBA is ready to step in once again," said IBA President Umar Kremlev in a press release. "We will pay the Olympic champions and medallists the same prize amounts as we did before, because they are our athletes, and the IBA is their home of boxing. Sport must be about the athletes and their rights and the entire Olympic movement needs a radical reboot.”
World Boxing, which was founded in 2023, has grown to 159 member national federations which have cut ties with the IBA.
