Although women have participated in boxing for almost as long as the sport has existed, female fights have been effectively outlawed for most of boxing's history until recently, with athletic commissioners refusing to sanction or issue licenses to women boxers, and most nations officially banning the sport. Reports of women entering the ring go back to the 18th century.
The IBA Men's World Boxing Championships are biennial amateur boxing competitions organised by the International Boxing Association, which is the sport governing body. Alongside the Olympic boxing programme, they are the highest level of competition for the sport. The championships were first held for men in 1974. Since 1989 the men's championships are held every odd year.
Katie Taylor is an Irish professional boxer and former footballer. She is the undisputed and lineal world lightweight champion since 2019, and the undisputed and lineal world super lightweight champion since 2023.
In boxing, a weight class is a measurement weight range for boxers. The lower limit of a weight class is equal to the upper weight limit of the class below it. The top class, with no upper limit, is called heavyweight in professional boxing and super heavyweight in amateur boxing. A boxing match is usually scheduled for a fixed weight class, and each boxer's weight must not exceed the upper limit. Although professional boxers may fight above their weight class, an amateur boxer's weight must not fall below the lower limit. A nonstandard weight limit is called a catchweight.
Vikas Krishan Yadav is an Indian boxer from Bhiwani district in Haryana, the hub of some of India's best boxers. He won a gold medal in the 2010 Asian Games in the Lightweight category and a gold medal in 75 kg weight category at the 2018 Commonwealth Games. He is one of the best boxers of India. He also boxed professionally.
Natasha Jonas is a British professional boxer is a two weight world champion who has held the unified WBC,and WBO female light-middleweight titles since 2022. As an amateur, she won a bronze medal in the light-welterweight division at the 2011 European Championships; bronze in the lightweight division at the 2012 AIBA World Championships; and silver in the light-welterweight division at the 2014 European Championships.
Michael John Conlan is an Irish professional boxer from Belfast.
Daniyar Maratovich Yeleussinov is a Kazakh professional boxer who was the IBO welterweight champion in 2021. As an amateur he competed at the 2012 and 2016 Olympics, winning a gold medal in 2016. He also won gold medals at the 2010 and 2014 Asian Games; the 2013 World Championships; and silver at the 2015 World Championships.
The boxing tournaments at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro took place from 6 to 21 August 2016 at the Pavilion 6 of Riocentro. However, boxing at the games was overshadowed with controversy after there were doubts raised that results in certain bouts had been manipulated. These concerns were upheld in a report published in 2021.
Mikaela Joslin Mayer is an American professional boxer, who has held WBO welterweight title since September 2024. She is also a former unified female super-featherweight world champion, having held the WBO and the IBF titles simultaneously. She has also held the interim WBC female lightweight world title. As an amateur, she won a bronze medal at the 2012 World Championships and competed for the U.S. at the 2016 Olympics.
Joe Cordina is a Welsh-Maltese professional boxer. He is a two-time super-featherweight world champion, having held the International Boxing Federation (IBF) title from April 2023 until May 2024 and previously in 2022.
Kellie Anne Harrington OLY is an Irish retired amateur boxer. During her career she was double Olympic gold medalist, winning at Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024, and 2018 World champion. Harrington also won gold medals at the 2023 European Games and European Championship.
Aoife O'Rourke is an Irish amateur boxer. She won gold medals in the middleweight division at the 2019, 2022, and 2024 European championships as well at the 2023 European Games. O'Rourke represented Ireland at the 2024 Summer Olympics but lost in the first round.
Nadine Apetz is a German amateur boxer. She won bronze medals at the World Championships in 2016 and 2018, and gold at the 2017 EU Championships. In 2021, she became the first German woman to qualify for a boxing event at the Summer Olympic Games.
Imane Khelif is an Algerian professional boxer. She won the gold medal in the women's 66 kg (welterweight) boxing event at the 2024 Summer Olympics.
Gabriel Dossen is an Irish amateur boxer who won a gold medal at the 2022 European Championships.
Abdumalik Khalokov is an Uzbek amateur boxer, who won a gold medal at the Youth World Championships and 2018 Summer Youth Olympics. Gold medalist of 2023 IBA Men's World Boxing Championships and silver medalist of 2021 AIBA World Boxing Championships.
Lewis Richardson is an English boxer who as an amateur won a bronze medal in the 71 kg category at the 2024 Summer Olympics. He also won a silver medal at the 2022 European Championships and competed at the 2019 World Championships.
Caitlin Fryers is an Irish boxer. She competed in the 2022 Women's European Amateur Boxing Championships, winning the silver medal in the light flyweight event. She also competed at the 2017 AIBA Youth Women's World Boxing Championships and 2022 European U22 Boxing Championships.
Svetlana Kamenova Staneva is a Bulgarian boxer competing in the featherweight division. She won the silver medal in the women's featherweight event at the 2023 European Games held in Poland. She won the gold medal in her event at the 2024 European Amateur Boxing Championships held in Belgrade, Serbia. Staneva represented Bulgaria at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, France.
