2021 Olympics Fan Guide: Everything you need to know about boxing

The 2020 Tokyo Olympics begin at the end of July. Olympic boxing makes its debut on Saturday, July 24. Here’s what you need to know to enjoy the action.

Olympic boxing took place several thousand years ago during the OG Olympics in Athens, Greece. The sport made its debut at the 1904 Olympics in St. Louis, according to Olympics.com. It’s a tradition that continues on strongly today.

Olympic boxing has evolved over the years. The rules have changed in the last several years, and numerous professional boxers are competing at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. The boxing tournament begins on Saturday, July 24, at 11 a.m. Japanese Standard Time. If you’re in the states, you can catch the action on Friday, July 23, starting at 10 p.m. ET. The other days of competition are July 25-Aug. 1 and Aug. 3-8.

Many talented athletes are coming from all over the world. Here’s a guide to help you enjoy Olympic boxing.

2021 Olympics: The elevator pitch for boxing

While Olympic boxing is categorized as amateur boxing, several high-level professionals will participate in these Olympic games. This also occurred at the 2016 games in Rio de Janeiro, but the professionals heading to Tokyo are higher-caliber athletes.

The bouts are only three rounds in duration, but male athletes will not be wearing headgear. Female athletes will be wearing headgear. Women’s boxing began at the 2012 games, but the 2020 games will feature more weight classes and female athletes than ever before.

Historically, Olympic boxing has introduced the world to future stars. Boxers like Muhammad Ali, George Foreman, Andre Ward, Claressa Shields, Floyd Mayweather Jr., Roy Jones Jr., and many others jumpstarted their reputations at the Olympic games. Don’t blink, or else you might miss the next great world champion.

2021 Olympics: Team USA boxers to know

Team USA has struggled over the last several Olympic games. In 2016, Shakur Stevenson and Nico Hernandez medaled, but there hasn’t been a male gold medalist since Andre Ward in 2004. That’s a long drought.

While success on the men’s side has waned, U.S. women have been holding it down. Claressa Shields won back-to-back gold medals at the 2012 and 2016 Olympic games. She’s capitalized on her Olympic success, becoming a two-division professional world champion and arguably the best female boxer in history.

The pandemic postponed the 2020 Olympic games and canceled numerous important amateur boxing tournaments required to qualify for the Olympics. That contributed havoc to Team USA’s selection process.

Originally, several athletes were selected for the USA boxing team. Some athletes were left off controversially. Then, some athletes we’re deemed ineligible due to a lack of international points required to compete at the Olympics. Several boxers who were left off Team USA elected to turn professional but were allowed to join team USA because they had the necessary points despite their professional experience. It’s a long drama-filled mess.

Long story short, here his Team USA: Virginia Fuchs (flyweight), Duke Ragan (featherweight), Keyshawn Davis (lightweight), Rashida Ellis (lightweight), Oshae Jones (welterweight), Delante Johnson (welterweight), Naomi Graham (middleweight), Troy Isley (middleweight), and Richard Torrez Jr. (super heavyweight).

Fuchs, Ellis, Jones, and Graham make up Team USA’s women’s team. Obviously, all are very talented boxers, but Jones is the youngest of the group at 23 years old and very accomplished at a young age. She won a gold medal at the 2019 Pan American Games and comes from a famous boxing family headed by patriarch Otha Jones Jr.

Graham might be 32 years old, but the active Army staff sergeant also earned a gold medal at the 2019 Pan American Games, making her a contender for gold at the Olympics.

Ragan, Davis, and Isley were late adds and all turned pro on the men’s side, but their Olympic bouts will only count towards their amateur records. All are undefeated and were highly decorated amateurs.

Davis might be the USA men’s best chance of winning gold. He won a silver medal at the 2019 amateur World Championships. He’s also 4-0 with 3 KOs as a professional.

At 22 years old, Johnson also has high hopes. In 2016 he won a gold medal at the Youth World Championships.

2021 Olympics: Boxing rivalries

From a team perspective, the USA, Cuba, and several former USSR countries have dominated the medal count at the Olympics. The same occurrence may take place in Tokyo in 2021. We’ve gone through some of the American hopefuls, but here are a few frontrunners from around the world.

Bakhodir Jalolov should be the biggest name, literally and figuratively, on your Olympic boxing radar. The 27-year-old 6-foot-7 southpaw from Uzbekistan is a force to be reckoned with. Competing as a super heavyweight, Jalolov won gold at the 2019 amateur World Championships. He also competed at the 2016 Olympics but is better seasoned now to win Olympic gold.

Jalolov is 8-0 as a professional and has won all of his bouts by knockout. It almost seems unfair that Jalolov can compete as an amateur and professional simultaneously, but the Olympics are allowing professionals to compete. It’s hard to imagine Jalolov taking home anything less than gold.

Julio Cesar La Cruz is another name worth mentioning. The 31-year-old from Cuba has an amateur record of 206-18. Living in Cuba, he can never turn professional due to his country’s policies, but he’s a heck of an amateur boxer. He has won three amateur World Championships and won gold as a light heavyweight at the 2016 Olympics. He’s going for gold as a heavyweight in Tokyo.

Caroline Dubois from Great Britain is only 20 years old and has a record of 35-2. She won a gold medal at the 2018 Youth Olympics. She started boxing at nine years old and is the younger sister of professional heavyweight contender Daniel Dubois. In Tokyo, she’ll be competing in the lightweight division. There’s heavy competition, but young Dubois might have the skills to go all the way.