WBC to remove Russia and Belarus' boxers from official rankings

The World Boxing Council has doubled down on its decision related to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine by removing Russian and Belarusian boxers from its official rankings.

The WBC, one of the four major sanctioning bodies in boxing, had previously stated that it would not sanction fights in Russia and Belarus but has now extended its move to include the boxers.

“The WBC Board of Governors met and reviewed a specific situation, a specific case,” WBC President Mauricio Sulaiman stated at the annual WBC convention as reported by Boxing Scene.

“The WBC has reached a determination after analyzing the ongoing situation of the ongoing invasion of Russia into Ukraine. All fighters from Russia and Belarus are being removed from the WBC rankings.”

The decision meant that no boxer from Russia and Belarus would be able to fight for a WBC world title until further notice—something for which Sulaiman apologized to the boxers.

“The WBC will not sanction fights in those two countries and no national citizen from those two countries can compete for a WBC championship title,” Sulaiman said.

“I wish to express our deep regret for the athletes, for the promoters, for the members of the boxing industry from Russia and Belarus who will suffer the consequences of the actions outside the ring.”

—JMB, GMA Integrated News