ROME — Kazakhstan’s Gennady Golovkin will run as a candidate in the election for President of World Boxing, the former middleweight world champion said in a statement.
Golovkin, once considered the best pound-for-pound boxer in the world and winner of a silver medal at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, was appointed president of Kazakhstan’s National Olympic Committee in 2024.
He will run against Mariolis Charilaos, who was President of the Hellenic Boxing Federation from 2021 to 2025.
Current World Boxing President Boris van der Vorst said in September that he would not seek re-election, citing the relentless demands of leading the breakaway organisation and years of global travel as his reasons for stepping down.
World Boxing, established in 2023, has replaced the Russian-led International Boxing Association as the sport’s global governing body after the IBA was stripped of recognition.
The new organisation faces the task of safeguarding boxing’s Olympic future following the 2024 Paris Games.
“Our mission for 2026 is clear: to achieve full IOC recognition and to guarantee our place in Los Angeles 2028 and Brisbane 2032,” Golovkin said in a statement according to Reuters.
The 43-year-old, who retired from the ring three years ago, had a record of 345 wins from 350 fights as an amateur boxer before winning multiple middleweight world titles.
The vote for a new President will take place on November 23 during the World Boxing Congress in Rome, Italy.
The former Dutch federation head was elected World Boxing’s first president on a two-year term after the breakaway body was formed in 2023, tasked with the crucial mission of securing boxing’s Olympic future beyond the 2024 Paris Games.
During his tenure, he oversaw World Boxing’s expansion to over 120 national federations while also securing provisional recognition from the International Olympic Committee (IOC), leading to boxing’s reinstatement at the 2028 Los Angeles Games.
“My time as president has been fulfilling and inspiring, but it has also been relentless,” Van der Vorst said.
“After years of global travel and the daily demands of building World Boxing from the ground up to meet the requirements of the IOC and other stakeholders, I have concluded that I will not commit to another term as president.
“World Boxing is firmly established and recognised, and it is time for new leadership to guide the organisation towards Dakar 2026 (Youth Olympics) and Los Angeles 2028.”
