The first session of the World Boxing Association (WBA) Directorate Meeting being held in Medellín began with a reflection WBA President Gilberto Jesús Mendoza to all the members of the oldest boxing organization in the world. The leader spoke about the present situation of boxing and the need to change, to improve and be more useful for a sport that is going through difficult times.

“The mission is to project boxing and go to the bases. This is not a preamble to justify our incursion into amateur boxing, it is a must. The energy of the Olympic Games is contagious to everyone, it is undeniable that it is a very important event. However, the crucial thing is to start measuring where we are going,” he said.

“In today’s boxing, there is a tendency to commerce and to please particular interests. I say this because you do what a TV network wants and we, the organizations, are often indulgent. I do mea culpa because I thought that exposure was allied to the promoter or TV. This is not going to be a radical change, fans ask me who is the best champion and sometimes I notice that we have the champions by weight of a particular promoter, but is he really the best boxer in the world? Additionally, there are many professional organizations. That’s what sparked our interest in the amateur. We’ve been professionals and amateurs for years and that’s basic in the line we’re taking,” continued Mendoza.

The morning session also included a review of the Fuzhou convention, with all the changes made, while the organization’s plans for 2020 were discussed. Mendoza emphasized that Thursday’s session would specify the entity’s plans for the immediate future, in which the regions will have special importance for their implementation.

The president appointed Shivana Inalsingh to draft a list of candidates for a complete medical committee, while members such as Panama’s Miguel Prado and Puerto Rico’s Luis Pabon proposed several specialists to be part of that group.

The WBA Directorate and the organization in general, is preparing to celebrate 100 years of existence in 2021, a scenario that puts us in the commitment to continue being the most relevant entity in the world, but that requires changes that are already beginning to be implemented with the commitment of all its members.