Olympic Boxing:New 10-Point Scoring + No More Headgear
LOS ANGELES -- Olympic boxers will fight without head
guards in a pro-style scoring system starting this year
after several significant rule changes by the sport's
international governing body.
The International Boxing Association (AIBA) unveiled
several rule amendments this week, but the two biggest
changes will move the Olympic sport much closer to the
professional version. The rejection of headgear and the
introduction of 10-point scoring could make the sport
once known as amateur boxing more appealing to young
boxers seeking professional careers.
Male boxers at the world championships in October and
the Rio de Janeiro Olympics in 2016 won't wear the
protective head guards adopted before the 1984 Los
Angeles Games. Although the move might seem
counterintuitive in preventing brain injuries, the chairman
of AIBA's medical commission, Charles Butler, cites
numerous medical studies that suggest fighting without
head guards will decrease concussions.
"There's no evidence protective gear shows a reduction in
incidence of concussion," Butler said. "In 1982, when the
American Medical Association moved to ban boxing,
everybody panicked and put headgear on the boxers, but
nobody ever looked to see what the headgear did."
http://www.cbssports.com/olympics/story/21937278/olympic-boxing-drops-headgear-to-spark-interest
LOS ANGELES -- Olympic boxers will fight without head
guards in a pro-style scoring system starting this year
after several significant rule changes by the sport's
international governing body.
The International Boxing Association (AIBA) unveiled
several rule amendments this week, but the two biggest
changes will move the Olympic sport much closer to the
professional version. The rejection of headgear and the
introduction of 10-point scoring could make the sport
once known as amateur boxing more appealing to young
boxers seeking professional careers.
Male boxers at the world championships in October and
the Rio de Janeiro Olympics in 2016 won't wear the
protective head guards adopted before the 1984 Los
Angeles Games. Although the move might seem
counterintuitive in preventing brain injuries, the chairman
of AIBA's medical commission, Charles Butler, cites
numerous medical studies that suggest fighting without
head guards will decrease concussions.
"There's no evidence protective gear shows a reduction in
incidence of concussion," Butler said. "In 1982, when the
American Medical Association moved to ban boxing,
everybody panicked and put headgear on the boxers, but
nobody ever looked to see what the headgear did."
http://www.cbssports.com/olympics/story/21937278/olympic-boxing-drops-headgear-to-spark-interest
