Irish High Performance head coach Billy Walsh believes artificial intelligence may be needed in boxing if the sport is to remain in the Olympics beyond 2024.
Boxing, a staple of the Summer Olympics since 1904 (except in 1912 due to Swedish laws), is at risk of being excluded from the 2028 Games. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has warned that boxing will not be included unless the sport addresses governance and funding issues.
This comes after the IOC's decision to remove the International Boxing Association (IBA) from overseeing the sport at the 2024 Olympics due to unresolved reforms, with the IBA facing criticism for its ties to Russia.
Controversial judging is another major concern, highlighted by questionable decisions at this year’s games. Two of Ireland's fighters, Aoife O'Rourke and Daina Moorehouse, were on the receiving end of alleged poor judging. This issue isn’t new—former Irish boxer Michael Conlan experienced similar problems at the Rio 2016 Games.
Walsh, a key figure in Irish boxing, believes AI may be necessary to keep the sport in the Olympics. "Seriously, we are on the verge of not being in the 2028 Olympic Games, so I could be home sooner than you think. Tokyo (in 2021) did a really good job of vetting all the judges, but this time I don’t know what happened. The judging was scandalous," he said at GreenTech HQ in Enniscorthy last week.
Paris , France, August 6, 2024: Team United States head coach Billy Walsh watches on during the bout between Omari Jones of Team United States and Asadkhuja Muydinkhujaev of Team Uzbekistan in the men's 71 kg semi-final bout at Court Philippe-Chatrier in Roland Garros Stadium during the 2024 Paris Summer Olympic Games in Paris, France. (Photo By Brendan Moran/Sportsfile via Getty Images) )"Three years ago, I sat as part of a coaching commission and saw AI in action. It showed us points being missed, hits on marks, and punches being blocked, so it was able to tell us which punches were landed and which were missed. Things are advancing, so we can use AI to catch the hits and stop the judging from being all over the place.
"The criteria they have is like domination; how do you measure domination? It’s a simple sport: if I hit you more than you hit me, then I win the fight. That’s how it should be."
Walsh also criticised the lack of experience among the judges at games. "What really annoys me is that all these athletes have been training constantly for years, for this moment in their lives, and these judges turn up every six months for an event and sit down to judge them. What training are they doing?" he added.
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