Fights

Russian boxers were unexpectedly restored in their rights. Even the West is tired of sanctions!

Published

3 years ago

December 14, 2022

Jayden

Russian boxers were unexpectedly restored in their rights. Even the West is tired of sanctions!

First, America said that Russia should be returned to the Olympics, and now our boxers have their WBA rating restored. Why such changes?

Interesting events are taking place in the world of sports in recent weeks. The West has dramatically changed its rhetoric regarding our athletes, and now the words have already begun to be backed up by deeds. Russian and Belarusian boxers were officially restored in the World Boxing Association (WBA) rating.

There is reason to believe that this is not a one-time action. Has the gradual return of Russia to international sports begun?

It all started with the Americans and Macron

Last week, the executive committee of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) took place in Lausanne, Switzerland, where one of the main issues was the status of Russian and Belarusian athletes. The head of the IOC, Thomas Bach, despite the fact that he recommended once again to extend the suspension of Russia and Belarus, made a number of very interesting statements. The most important of them, of course, was the disclosure of the details of the conversation with French President Emmanuel Macron.

Macron, according to Bach, called for absolutely all countries to participate in the next Olympics in Paris in 2024, despite the political situation. The hint at Russia is simply obvious here. Such statements by Macron, of course, became sensational, because no other world leader had previously spoken in such a vein. Macron is not Bach, with all due respect to the head of the IOC. And it is unlikely that he would begin to scatter such words just like that, without putting a special meaning into it.

Emmanuel Macron / Photo: © John Berry / Contributor / Getty Images Sport / Gettyimages.ru

Only a few days passed, after which the head of the US Olympic Committee, Suzanne Lyons, made an even more unexpected statement. It was hardly possible to expect help from America, but nevertheless it came from there.

– The non-admission of the Russians throws us back. The United States supports the return of athletes who have trained for this all their lives to international competition, but we are opposed to them returning under the national flag. Lately, we’ve been wondering how relevant defensive measures are for Russia. And they came to the conclusion that the issue of security is no longer so acute, – Lyons quotes The Wall Street Journal.

Good news from boxing

And then a couple of days later came the news from the World Boxing Association. There, obviously, they heard hints from the President of France and the head of the US Olympic Committee and restored Russian and Belarusian athletes in the rating in the organization.

Athletes from these countries are not soldiers or part of the government, so it can be concluded that they have nothing to do with the ongoing conflict. For the sake of sport and for the benefit of their careers, they will be reinstated in the rankings and will compete for WBA titles, the WBA said in a statement.

Back in March, the World Boxing Association excluded Russian and Belarusian fighters from the rating lists, although the reigning world champions or individual regions retained their status. That is, the gate in the box was not completely closed. This, in particular, allowed our Dmitry Bivol to defend the world title, and later the Russian was even recognized as the best boxer of 2022.

In any case, the trend towards Russia’s return to the world sports family has been set. Apparently, the West began to understand that the non-participation of our athletes in international competitions does more harm than good. If earlier they were forced to work out the political agenda, now this issue is no longer so acute. Hence the sensational, at first glance, the words of Macron and the President of the US Olympic Committee. And now the positive news in boxing. It is quite possible that this is the same thaw in relations between Russia and the West, which came even earlier than one might have imagined.

Source: Sportbox

Jayden

Hi, my name is Jayden James. I am a writer at Sportish, and I mostly cover sports news. I have been writing since high school and have been published in various magazines and newspapers. I also write book reviews for a website. In my free time, I enjoy playing soccer and basketball.

Fights

Usik, Ronaldo, Iniesta, Khabib Nurmagomedov will come to Dubai on December 29

Published

2 hours ago

December 29, 2025

Madelyn

Usik, Ronaldo, Iniesta, Khabib Nurmagomedov will come to Dubai on December 29

World heavyweight champion (over 90.7 kg), Ukrainian Alexander Usik He will attend the World Sports Summit to be held in Dubai (UAE) between 29-30 December.

According to the organizers, the boxer will act as a speaker and guest on the theme “Warrior-poet: in the mind of Alexander Usik.”

Usik’s speech will be moderated by renowned speaker Nick Santonastasso, who has worked with the Ukrainian on several occasions: “I am grateful for the opportunity. I look forward to the chance to reveal all the treasures of a boxing legend.”

Many important names will attend the summit: football players Rio Ferdinand, Peter Crouch, Ronaldo, Roberto Baggio, Alessandro Del Piero, Andres Iniesta, former world champions Manny Pacquiao (boxing) and Khabib Nurmagomedov (UFC), tennis player Novak Djokovic.

Usik last appeared in the ring in July 2025, when he knocked out British boxer Daniel Dubois in the fifth round. Next year, the Ukrainian representative is expected to meet with former world champion American Deontay Wilder.

Check out this post on Instagram

Additions, expansions World Sports Summit (@worldsportssummit)

Source: Sport UA

Madelyn

I am a sports writer and journalist who has written for various online publications including Sportish. I’m originally from the UK but currently live in Toronto, Canada. I’m also an author on Sportish and have written several articles on a variety of sports-related topics.

Fights

Dembele is ranked fifth and Usyk is ranked 14th. The best athlete of 2025 in Europe has been announced

Published

3 hours ago

December 29, 2025

Madelyn

Dembele is ranked fifth and Usyk is ranked 14th. The best athlete of 2025 in Europe has been announced

Multiple world record holder, two-time Olympic champion in pole vault, Swede Armand Duplantis He was chosen as the best athlete of 2025 in Europe.

In the survey participated by 23 news sources across the continent, Duplantis received 184 points, ahead of Spanish tennis player Carlos Alcaraz, Roland Garros and US Open champion and Slovenian cyclist who qualified for the 2010 Turkish Gentlemen’s Show.

World heavyweight champion Ukrainian boxer Alexander Usik He took 14th place, shared with Norwegian biathlete Johannes Boe.

At least 62 athletes (20 women and 42 men) from 22 sports, representing 24 countries, scored in the survey. The most representatives in the ranking are from Norway (9), followed by Spain (6), France (5), the Netherlands, Italy and the United Kingdom (4 each).

Among the sports, football is the most representative (10), followed by athletics (8), basketball (8), tennis (5) and swimming (5).

Rating of the best athletes of Europe 2025:

Armand Duplantis (Sweden/athletics) – 184 points
Carlos Alcaraz (Spain/tennis) – 143
Tadej Pogacar (Slovenia/cycling) – 134
Femke Bol (Netherlands/athletics) – 76
Ousmane Dembele (France/football) – 70
Lando Norris (Great Britain/Formula 1) – 68
Jannik Sinner (Italy/tennis) – 57
Arina Sabalenka (Belarus/tennis) – 56
Marco Odermatt (Switzerland/alpine skiing) – 45
Johannes Kläbo (Norway/cross-country skiing) – 29
Leon Marchand (France/swimming) – 27
Marc Marquez (Spain/MotoGP) – 25
Iga Swiatek (Poland/tennis) – 19
Johannes Boe (Norway/biathlon), Alexander Usik (Ukraine/boxing) – 16 each

Source: Sport UA

Madelyn

Fights

Wilder made a bold statement ahead of his title fight with Usyk

Published

4 hours ago

December 29, 2025

Madelyn

Wilder made a bold statement ahead of his title fight with Usyk

Former world heavyweight champion (over 90.7 kg), American Deontay Wilder (44-4-1, 43 KOs) shared his expectations for the upcoming fight against WBC, WBA and IBF titleholder Oleksandr Usyk (24-0, 15 KOs).

“You know my next opponent. Usyk challenged me to a fight. He said he wanted to meet me in the ring. I accepted the challenge. “I push horses” and “I feel it, I feel it hard.”

What’s my plan? Be smart, be faster, use my agility, be tough, get in the ring and knock him out. I am known for my strength, I need to show it. “I’ve been through a tough journey in my life, but I’m back and ready to beat Usyk,” Wilder said.

The American had 49 fights in the professional ring and won 44 victories (43 of them ahead of schedule). In June, Wilder knocked out his compatriot Tyrell Herndon, ending his two defeats in 2023 and 2024.

Usyk last appeared in the ring in July, when he stopped Briton Daniel Dubois. The Ukrainian became the absolute world champion but lost a title by refusing to defend his WBO belt in October.

Source: Sport UA

Madelyn