President’s Speech for APB Announcement
Dear National Member Federations and global boxing
family, ladies and gentlemen,
I am here today to make an historical announcement about
the future of AIBA and our sport with the hopes of
enlightening the lives and dreams of many boxers.
In 2007 at the AIBA Extraordinary Congress held in
Chicago, we set together a new mission for AIBA in order
to govern the sport of boxing in all its forms. Since then,
including the launch of the World Series of Boxing, we have
strived our time and efforts to realize our reform plans and
long-term goals.
The launch of the World Series of Boxing gave some great
motivation and belief that our sport could be transformed as
one of the highest reputable and recognized sports around
the world. Although it was by no means easy to launch a
new team-based global boxing competition in today’s
competitive market, we can look back on the first season
with pride.
Today, the AIBA Executive Committee has unanimously
approved the creation of another revolutionary program
which is the AIBA Professional Boxing program called APB.
The main reasons to develop AIBA’s own professional
boxing program are as follows:
First of all, I would like to change AIBA as the ultimate
responsible body for the boxer’s entire boxing career
including amateur and professional and would like to
give more opportunities to all our boxers to compete
and live in a better boxing world with a stable financial
status and as respected role models for young
generations.
I would like to make of AIBA the true governing body to
support all National Federations and grassroots
including clubs by generating more revenues from the
APB program.
I am also deeply determined to change the image and
reputation of our sport with transparency, popularity
and social contribution by taking the responsibility of
managing the destinies of the sport of boxing in all
forms
I am determined to launch professional boxing under
the umbrella of AIBA so that we will be the true and
respected leader of our sport, and not any other
organization.
The two core programs in AIBA Professional Boxing such
as an Individual Ranking Competition and a Worldwide
Competition were approved.
In the Individual Ranking Competition, all APB boxers will
compete at different levels representing their country but
with some emphasis on individual glory. This program will
start immediately at the time of the APB launch.
The Worldwide Competition will be a global event for which
each National Member Federation can send APB boxers to
represent its country. This program will be developed a few
years after the launch of AIBA Professional Boxing.
The APB boxers will be categorized in three different
divisions:
1. World Ranking
2. Continental Ranking
3. National Ranking divisions
The Worldwide Division will feature the top 20 boxers in
each weight category, fighting over 10 rounds for ranking
competitions and 12 rounds for title matches.
The Continental Ranking Competition will feature boxers
ranked 21-50 in each weight category, fighting over 8
rounds for ranking competitions and 12 rounds for title
matches.
National Ranking Competitions will feature boxers ranked
51 and below in each weight category, fighting over 6
rounds for Ranking Competitions and 10 rounds for title
matches.
With the launch of APB, we will also change the Technical
& Competition Rules for all of our programs. This means,
that we aim to take headguards off in all elite men
competitions in AIBA Amateur, WSB and AIBA
Professional Boxing programs.
However, we decided to maintain headguards for Women,
Youth and Junior categories.
For the scoring system for all competitions, from the time of
the 1st season of APB which will be during the Spring of
2013, we will use the current WSB scoring system for all
AIBA Amateur and Professional Boxing competitions.
We will invite the current AIBA (AOB) registered boxers
who wish to turn to professional boxing to APB with an age
limit from 19 years old until 40 years old. In addition, in
order to truly develop the APB ranking competitions with
the best boxers around the world, for the 1st season only,
APB will accept current professional boxers to join APB
with limited terms and conditions.
In addition, most importantly, we will allow these APB
boxers to compete in the Olympic Games with limited terms
and conditions and we plan to make this dream come true
from the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.
All boxers in AIBA programs, AOB, WSB and APB, will only
be selected through the full cooperation with our National
Member Federations. This means that the boxers will
remain as registered boxers of National Federations,
although they turned to AIBA Professional Boxing.
It is planned to identify and select the best AOB boxers for
APB within a one year time period until the Olympic Games.
As we are launching a massive program in our organization,
our financial conditions must be stabilized in order to
operate all necessary means for the success of these 3
core programs.
Therefore, we will establish AIBA’s own marketing arm
called the Boxing Marketing Arm (BMA). BMA will be the
main promoter for boxers and will organize all future APB
competitions.
In addition, BMA will be the ultimate marketing tool to
generate all necessary revenues for AOB, WSB and APB
by controlling all commercial rights of these 3 organizations.
In this regard, we have already secured enough seed fund
to begin our operation for APB and BMA.
We will start AIBA Professional Boxing with a program with
National Member Federations having strong wills and a
determination to change our sport to a better commanding
position in the international sports community and Olympic
movement. Therefore, we will grow step-by-step by
satisfying continuous and stable achievements in each year
without hasting to achieve our goals within a short period of
time.
This year, with the AIBA Executive Committee’s approval,
we will complete both business plans for APB and BMA
and start to organize the APB structure in AIBA.
Then, in 2012, we will register both APB and BMA to sign
top boxers from both AOM and current professional boxing
program.
Finally, at the beginning of 2013, the AIBA Professional
Boxing competitions will start.
I need your support. I need your participation. Trust me and
your Executive Committee members. We need your
endorsement that we are doing the right thing for our young
generation to compete in boxing with some long and bright
hopes and dreams.
I believe APB will boost the continuous success of WSB. I
also believe APB will greatly support and assist much more
all the boxing programs in your countries.
I would like to thank you for listening to this announcement
and cordially request your full participation with some
patience and support on AIBA and boxing.