Michael Conlan happy to see amateur boxing in better hands
- Shidonna Raven
- 1 day ago
- 2 min read
By Tom Ivers
This Article has been curated by UDB
September 2, 2025
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This is a big week for both Michael Conlan and amateur boxing.
The Irishman’s career will be on the line this Friday when he faces Jack Bateson in Dublin, Ireland, knowing another defeat will put an end to his world title ambitions and most probably his professional career. It is also the first amateur boxing world championships since the governing body World Boxing took control of the sport. It is fitting that on such a big week for both it also marks a decade since Conlan struck gold at the 2015 World Championships in Doha.
Back when Conlan was in the unpaid ranks, amateur boxing was in the hands of AIBA, with the governing body eventually being suspended by the International Boxing Committee (IOC) back in 2019, with violations of financial and organizational management as well as sporting integrity amongst the wrongdoings that were proven by the McLaren Independent Investigation Team (MIIT).
Conlan himself faced the brunt end of AIBA’s antics at the 2016 Rio Olympics. Conlan, one of the favorites to claim gold, faced Russia’s Vladimir Nikitin in the quarter-finals, with a win securing at least a bronze medal from him and his country. After three one-sided rounds, it seemed an easy contest to score in Conlan’s favour, however, the ringside judges awarded the contest to the Russian. Conlan, disgusted by the decision, famously flicked the middle finger to all those seated ringside involved in crushing his Olympic dream. The IOC then took control of amateur boxing for the next two Olympic cycles, Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024.
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