Boxing is a combat sport that involves two people attacking and defending with their fists. It is also considered as a contact sport because it emphasizes and requires physical contact between the players. Boxers usually wear protective gloves and other protective equipment such as mouthguards, groin protection, and protective headgears.
Boxing and every organized sport have grounded to a halt and all of the athletes were not able to compete locally and internationally. Boxing felt the impact of the pandemic when boxing matches scheduled to take place around the globe have been postponed and canceled, whether it is an amateur or a professional boxing match. Professional and amateur sports were shut down all over the world in order to prevent and contain the coronavirus from spreading. It is because coronavirus can be transmitted through the respiratory droplets when a person speaks, sneezes, or cough. It can also be transferred when a person touched a contaminated surface and then touches their mouth or eyes.
The Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympic Games is the biggest sporting event in the world and it was cancelled and postponed due to the pandemic. The Olympic qualifying events for Tokyo 2020 have been postponed as well.
Due to the pandemic that we are facing right now, sports that were once part of every athletes’ life all around the world have been put into a halt without the certainty of when will all things be back to normal.
During the start of the pandemic, boxing industry was already facing lots of issues and problems just like the other sports. The biggest problem in boxing industry was the cancellations and postponements of all the boxing matches and events. This created a domino effect. With no fights, no one was able to make any money not even the boxers, the managers, and the promoters. Without the fights, there were no trainings needed, so there were no trainers, no sparring partners, and no use of gyms. Broadcasters were not be able to have any fight to cover and fans were left with no live action to watch. Apart from these issues and problems, the uncertainty of when will everything be back to normal was another issue faced by everyone in the boxing industry.
Right now, there are some countries that have slowly begun to allow some sports and allowed to reopen some of the sports facilities after several months of lockdown, national government restrictions, and social distancing requirements. The boxing industry made some adjustments and made some guidelines in order to start again even in the middle of this pandemic. Boxing matches and events were now being held with extra precautions and strict health protocols. No audience were allowed in these matches and events. Proper health guidelines and protocols were being followed, apart from the constant swabbing and testing if there are people positive with the virus.
Slowly, the boxing industry is regaining its strength and soon will be back to what it should be. After this pandemic, everything will be back to normal and everyone will get to enjoy and relish the sports of boxing.
