JMac wrote:This is what I wrote in a similar thread on the current scene:
I can tell you this, things are looking up for USA Boxing in international boxing. First of all AIBA changed the scoring system back to pro style scoring. Before '92 Olympics, it was a 20 point must system but included a system of counting punches. AIBA was lead by a very corrupt leader from Pakistan. He's dead now and AIBA is lead by a billionaire from Taiwan. He wants to take over all of boxing including the pros. He knows in order for his pro league to take off, he needs USA to do well in the Olympics like the old days and he needs American boxers to fight in his league to be successful. He has his work cut out for him and it will take many years possibly.
Part of helping USA be successful is getting rid of the corrupt judges from countries that don't like USA. There is a bunch of them but things are working out in that area. When the scoring system changed to computer scoring, the most successful countries in international boxing in the last 4 Olympics knew they had to change the style of their boxers to suit the scoring system. US coaches were too stupid to do that so the boxers suffered. The coaches continued to train their boxers with a pro style and US lost some very good young boxers to the pros over the years. I can't blame the boxers for going pro early when they would go to international tournaments and get robbed. They figured they might as well get paid for getting screwed. Now the scoring system is a pro style 10 point scoring system that will suit the pro style American boxers better. Most of the corrupt judges are gone and best of all, USA Boxing hired the Cuban Olympic coach from the Beijing Olympics who was voted coach of the year by AIBA. US boxers are entering more and more international tournaments, something they lacked when they were not doing well and now just for 2013, USA has won 35 gold medals, 16 silver and 24 bronze medals in international tournaments.
People like Skept can go, who needs them and their negative opinions. There are many people all up in arms about amateurs not wearing headgear in big tournaments saying the boxers should just turn pro if they aren't going to wear headgear. They obviously were not around back before '84 when headgear was not worn and USA dominated Olympic boxing. I remember the old days and look forward to the new days and the future for USA Boxing. The style in international tournaments has already changed and the boxers are banging again like they used to and it will be exciting to see Olympics without headgear. The fans and TV will return. After the US won 5 gold medals in the '76 Montreal Olympics with the Spinks brothers and Sugar Ray Leonard, the numbers of kids joining gyms skyrocketed. It would be nice to see that again.
If you read your post with a slightly different head on Jmac you'll see a trend that sits at the root of amateur boxings ills. It is a mater of opinion, you can't say amateur boxing has been good during the computer scoring days and the days of Chaudhry can you? Maybe you can but I don't.
That being the changing of the scoring system, back and forth between open assessment and computers, clickers with 3 judges, 5 judges etc., etc., Hopefully they will have finally found a system that works and judges that are honest.
Your correct that the USA didn't respond to the changes but the problem was not of their making.
JMac wrote:ABC, read that again. In 2013 alone USA Boxing has won 35 gold medals, 16 silver and 24 bronze medals in international tournaments.
What does that tell you? It tells me things are looking up for USAB.
It was suggested here in the UK that teams were entered into less difficult tournaments in order to ensure medal wins and continuation of government funding!
I'm not saying that's the case but it might be worth doing an exercise to determine the quality of the competitions the US team have been entering?
Under previous two USAB administrations, for whatever reason which could have been funding or whatever, the USA did not enter very many internationals tournaments except duels and world championships. We lacked international experience so I don't care what tournament they enter as long as they enter as many as they can and get the experience to box against different styles and if some are not the best tournaments but our kids are winning and gaining confidence, I'm all for it.
