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28 March 2024

Women boxing's day finally comes

India's boxer MC Mary Kom punches a bag during a training session at Balewadi Stadium in Pune, about 190 km (118 miles) from Mumbai, March 12, 2012. (REUTERS)

Published
By Agencies

After judging controversies marred the first week of fights at the London's Games, boxing's governing body will play its trump card on Sunday when they allow women to compete on an Olympic stage for the first time.

The inclusion of women's boxing, rejected in the past because of a limited global appeal that saw them only sanctioned to fight in the 2012 host country 15 years ago, brings to an end the last all-male sport at the summer games.

Competing in just three categories and with smaller fields than their male counterparts, the women have had to wait over a week to make their bow, watching on as two officials were sent home and another referee suspended. 

For one day at least, those controversies will be forgotten.

"It means a lot to me, we never really got our recognition. I think that it's right, and that we're going to be able to showcase the best of women's boxing," 17-year-old American middleweight Claressa Shields told Reuters.

"We've got really good women here. When they see the best, they're going to be like 'yeah, women can box'."

The International Boxing Association's (AIBA) president said last week that he hopes more women will box at the Games in four years time and that he would press the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to increase its quota of competitors to allow it to do so. 

That is provided they perform well, AIBA president Wu Ching-kuo said, something India's Mary Kom and Ireland's Katie Taylor, sporting heroes in their countries who hold nine world titles between them, fully intend doing.

Like Shields, Taylor and Kom have received byes into the quarter-finals and have to wait until Monday to join the action, leaving it to 24 fly, light and middleweight fighters to blaze the trail on Sunday.

When North Korea's Hye Song Kim and Elena Savelyeva of Russia take to the ring at 1230 GMT, the world will be watching.

Olympic Games schedule for Sunday, August 5 (times GMT):

MEDALS - 23

Athletics
(1000) Women's marathon
(1800) Women's 400m hurdles - 1st rd
(1805) Men's high jump - qualification rd
(1835) Women's triple jump - final
(1845) Men's 100m - semi-finals
(1915) Men's 1500m - semi-finals
(1920) Men's hammer - final
(1940) Men's 400m - semi-finals
(2010) Women's 400m - final
(2025) Men's 3000m steeplechase - final
(2050) Men's 100m - final

Badminton
(0800) Men's singles bronze medal match, men's doubles bronze medal match
(1200) Men's singles final, men's doubles final

Basketball - women's
Preliminary round
(0800) France v Russia (Group B)
(1015) Angola v Czech Republic (Group A)
(1330) Canada v Australia (Group B)
(1545) China v United States (Group A)
(1900) Croatia v Turkey (Group A)
(2115) Great Britain v Brazil (Group B)

Beach Volleyball
(1700) Women's quarter-finals

Boxing
(1230) Last 16 -- women's 51kg, 60 kg, 75 kg
(1930) Quarter-finals -- men's 56kg, 91kg

Track Cycling
(0900) Men's Omnium (individual pursuit, scratch, time-trial), qualification,
Women's sprint -- last 32 and last 16 women
Men's sprint -- quarter-finals

Equestrian
(1000) Jumping individual 2nd qualifier, jumping team round 1

Fencing
(0800-1400) Men's team foil

Artistic Gymnastics
(1300) Apparatus finals: men's floor exercise final, women's vault final, men's pommel horse final.

Weightlifting
(1430) Women's +75kg final

Handball -- women
1st rd:
(0830) Sweden v South Korea (Group B)
(1015) Brazil v Angola (Group A)
(1330) Montenegro v Russia (Group A)
(1515) Croatia v Great Britain (Group A)
(1830) Norway v Spain (Group B)
(2015) Denmark v France (Group B)

Field Hockey -- men
1st rd:
(0730) New-Zealand v Belgium (Group B)
(0945) Pakistan v South Africa (Group A)
(1245) India v South Korea (Group B)
(1500) Netherlands v Germany (Group B)
(1800) Great Britain v Australia (Group A)
(2015) Argentina v Spain (Group A)

Greco-Roman Wrestling
(1200) 55 kg, 74 kg

Synchronised Swimming
(1400) Duets (technical routine)

Diving
(1800) Women's 3m springboard final

Tennis
(1100) Bronze medal matches men's singles, women's doubles.
Mixed doubles final
(1300) Men's singles final, women's doubles

Table Tennis
(0900) Men's team quarter-finals
(1800) Women's team semi-finals

Shooting
(0800) 50m pistol men's qualification, trap men's qualification

Sailing
(1100) Women's RS:X, 470 opening series, Men's 49er, RS:X opening series
(1200) Men's Star final
(1300) Men's Finn final

Volleyball - Women
1st rd
(0830) Algeria v Czech Republic (Pool A)
(1030) China v South Korea (Pool B)
(1345) Great Britain v Japan (Pool A)
(1545) Italy v Russia (Pool A)
(1900) United States v Turkey (Pool B)
(2100) Brazil v Serbia (Pool B)

Water Polo - Women
Quarter-finals
(1350) 2A v 3B
(1510) 3A v 2B
(1800) 1A v 4B
(1920) 4A v 1B