Boxing’s return to Olympic competition in Tokyo looks like it could be fairly smooth after a half-decade of turmoil and drama at the highest levels. The much-criticized International Boxing Association was banned from this Olympic cycle, and a task force is running the Tokyo tournament. The biggest change is the addition of two women’s weight classes, allowing 100 women into the field after 36 fought in Rio. The women’s classes came with a compromise. Because the IOC didn’t increase boxing’s total athlete quota, those new places for women had to be created through the elimination of two men’s weight classes.
