AMATEUR BOXING - ALMOST DOWN AND OUT

[dalcumly]

It is clear from the fact that there is now practically no amateur boxing on TV unless for the odd highlights during the Olympics or Commonwealth games that the public , in general , have lost interest . I was a trainer in an amateur club for 12 years and if there was an amateur contest in my back garden , I wouldn't open the blinds . I think the reasons for this apathy are crystal clear .
Firstly - the headguards . Rightly or wrongly I associate headguards with sparring . Therefore when watching an amateur contest I can't get it out of my head that its not a REAL fight , an exhibition almost . I know that there are hundreds of youngsters out there who have been brought up on this , but I'm sorry , its still just sparring . The other downside is that the fighters are anonymous . You can't see their faces for goodness sake . And the blue and red vests - give me a break !
Secondly - the computer scoring system . Anyone who knows anything about boxing can , on most occasions , score a contest reasonably accurately , and that certainly does not tie up with how computer scoring weighs up things .
The nearest I can get to the thrills I experienced while watching the ABA finals or amateur internationals is the Prizefighter series . That is what the public want from amateur boxing . I know what I'm wishing for over 3 x 3 mins rounds is blood and guts , but that's fighting .
I know I might be a biased Scotsman , but my amateur heroes were Dick Mc Taggart , Andy Wyper , Willie Fisher and Ken Buchanan . Boy , these guys thrilled the crowds.
It's time that Britain just simply opted out of the World governing body for amateur boxing and went alone . I'm certain other countries would join in .

[alexpaterson]

Shreds the scoring is terrible as an amateur myself I go to most shows in my area and at least once a night you can't believe a decision, body shots never get scored!!

[reggaereggae]

Club shows are great......but the computer scoring just ruins it as a spectacle.

[29sek]

Yes, I think the scoring would be much better if it was the same as the professionals. I saw a fight at the Commanwelth games where a fighter was getting pummelled for the whole fight, through out the odd jab here and there and win the fight on points! For me thats just not how you should be able to win boxing matches

[Matt W]

How much amateur football gets on TV? How much amateur rugby (Union has been professional for fifteen years now) gets on TV? None.

Amateur boxing is what it is: a nurturing/training ground for the pro ranks and a Sunday league equivalent for those with less potential. The only time it should get air time is when it does, the olympics and the commonwealths.

No it isn’t, elite amateur boxing is funded to the tune of £8 million by the taxpayer via UK Sport with the aim to win Olympic medals, not to create future professional champions. To this end GB Boxing has one of the most professional set-ups you are likely to see in boxing and little is left to chance (as featured in this month’ Boxing Monthly. Whether we like the scoring system or not it is what we have, and GB Boxing are expected to deliver medals within that system. How would splitting from this benefit amateur boxing in this country?

I agree that the scoring system means that the difference between the two codes is greater than it has ever been and we can debate the rights and wrongs of that, but it is the responsibility of professional boxing to turn successful amateurs into successful professionals, it is not the role of amateur boxing to compromise what would make GB successful at Olympic level in order for professional boxing to benefit.

And let's not forget, illustrious champions like Muhammad Ali, Sugar Ray Leonard, Lennox Lewis, George Foreman and Oscar De La Hoya all cite Olympic Gold amongst the very pinnacle of their accomplishments.

[yogi]

Bit of a misleading title.

While I don't disagree with comments about the scoring, I attend amateur shows all the time and they are very well attended. Club shows are almost always sell outs and the boxing is usually of a very good standard.

[Tommy Gunn13]

Does anyone know the results in the GB box offs last night?