Five for fighting? The odds are against most of them throwing a punch in Brazil
Five names that have come up in discussions about professional boxers competing at the Olympics:
Manny Pacquiao
The eight-division world champion was used as the poster boy for including professionals in the Olympics and, initially, indicated he was interested in fighting in Rio. But, last week, he said that he will focus on his career as a senator in the Philippines instead.
Wladimir Klitschko
He won gold in the 1996 Atlanta Games and has long said he would like another shot at the Olympics but Rio won’t be on the table for him. He is scheduled for a multi-million dollar fight on July 9 in England, so he can’t be in Venezuela for the July 3-8 Rio qualifying tournament.
Amir Khan
The British boxer was one of the few professionals to applaud the Olympic decision. He won silver in the 2004 Athens Games before turning pro and, on Wednesday, said that if the rules and his promoter allowed it, he’d love to represent Pakistan, the country of his parents’ birth.
Sergei Kovalev
The light heavyweight was mentioned as a possibility for Rio by the head coach of the Russian Olympic boxing team but it seems unlikely. He’s already scheduled for a July 11 professional fight and a much-anticipated matchup with Andre Ward in November for a multi-million-dollar purse.
Denis Lebedev
The Russian cruiserweight, who turned professional in 2001, is another boxer who was mentioned as having Rio potential by Russia’s Olympic boxing head coach. He currently holds several professional titles and, last month, beat Victor Emilio Ramirez with a second-round technical knockout.