Olympics preview: Cuban athletes eyeing gold in Tokyo shanghaisun.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from shanghaisun.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
By Syndicated Content
By Martin Petty
BANGKOK (Reuters) – Boxing will start with a clean slate for the Tokyo Olympics following an acrimonious contest at the 2016 Games, with the sport’s troubled governing body and all 36 of the Rio officials barred from any involvement in the competition.
With a history dating back to the ancient Olympics and bouts at every Games in the past century, boxing’s passion, popularity and place at the Olympics is rarely in question, but persistent disputes over judging quality have blighted successive contests.
A special task force running the Tokyo competition in place of the suspended International Boxing Association (AIBA) is eager to win back trust of boxers and teams by ensuring fair fights and consistent scoring to keep allegations of foul play to a minimum.
Transparent Tokyo hopes judging rejig can dial down boxing disputes bworldonline.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from bworldonline.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
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HAVANA (Reuters) - Cuban athletes are preparing to leave for Tokyo and the Olympic Games, with fans ready to cheer them on, disappointed that the national sport of baseball did not make the cut but eager to watch their boxers, wrestlers and others compete.
The Summer Games, scheduled for July 23 to Aug. 8, are frequently a source of local pride as the Communist-run Caribbean island of 11.2 million people tends to do well. Local authorities say they hope to place within the top 20 medal winners.
Five years ago, in the 2016 edition in Rio de Janeiro, Cuba won five gold medals, two silver and four bronze, ranking 18th among more than 200 nations.
Olympics-Cubans to cheer their boxers and wrestlers, but not ball players, in Tokyo reuters.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from reuters.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.