Kazakhstan’s boxing icon Gennadiy Golovkin has been inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame. The former middleweight champion was elected president of World Boxing in November, tasked with securing the sport's Olympic future and unifying a divided landscape.
Gennadiy Golovkin has become the first athlete from Kazakhstan to be inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame, joining an elite group that includes Muhammad Ali, Mike Tyson, Floyd Mayweather Jr, Manny Pacquiao, Bernard Hopkins and Wladimir Klitschko.
"I am very excited and appreciate this so much. This is the biggest honour in boxing and the last piece of the puzzle in my career. My dream has come true. I'm proud to have a legacy in boxing," Golovkin said.
Golovkin’s distinguished career includes an Olympic silver medal in Athens in 2004 and two titles as the middleweight world champion, with a professional record of 42 wins, two losses and one draw.
Between 2017 and 2018, the boxing legend, also known by his nickname "Triple G", was ranked as the world's best boxer pound for pound.
Although he has not officially announced his retirement, Golovkin has not fought since his second loss to another world champion, Mexico's Canelo Álvarez, and has shifted his focus to sports administration at the National Olympic Committee of Kazakhstan.
Golovkin elected president of World Boxing
In November, Golovkin was elected president of World Boxing at the federation's congress in Rome.
He replaced Boris van der Vorst, who declined to seek a second term after leading the organisation since its founding in 2023.
Golovkin ran unopposed after Greece's Mariolis Charilaos withdrew.
"It is a privilege to be elected as the new President of World Boxing. But this is just the beginning. Starting today, athletes will be at the heart of every decision we make," Golovkin told the congress.
"On the road to LA28, we will restore trust in Olympic boxing to secure our place in Brisbane and beyond. Now it's time to move forward as one united boxing family."
Golovkin has chaired World Boxing's Olympic Commission since September 2024, working to secure the sport's inclusion at the Los Angeles 2028 Games.
The effort paid off: the International Olympic Committee approved boxing for the LA28 programme in March at its 144th session in Greece's Costa Navarino.
Kazakh sports journalist Olzhas Baibosin said Golovkin's appointment was well-timed. "At a moment like this, the sport needs someone with unquestionable authority. And Golovkin's reputation in the boxing world is exceptionally strong—his name carries real trust," he said.
In his programme, Golovkin outlined priorities including securing boxing's Olympic future, establishing a World Boxing Athletes' Council with voting rights by 2026, strengthening athlete protection through impartial judging and independent oversight, and launching an educational academy. The organisation now includes more than 130 national federations.
A divided global boxing landscape
Golovkin’s appointment comes at a time when the global boxing landscape remains divided.
World Boxing was created in 2023 after the IOC withdrew its recognition of the International Boxing Association (IBA) in 2019, citing concerns over transparency, governance and integrity. Despite losing IOC status, the IBA continues to operate independently and recently staged its men’s World Championships in Dubai.
The Dubai event offered substantial prize money: $300,000 for gold medallists, $150,000 for silver, $75,000 for bronze and $10,000 for quarterfinalists.
Kazakhstan's leading boxers — Makhmud and Torekhan Sabyrkhan, Sanzhar Tashkenbay, and Aibek Oralbay — who won gold at the World Boxing World Championships in Liverpool, did not compete at the IBA event.
Golovkin faces the challenge of stabilising a landscape in which national teams and athletes navigate two parallel competition systems — one aligned with the Olympic movement and the other offering financial incentives outside the Olympic pathway.
"Golovkin will bring sponsors, and with that, real changes will follow," Baibosin said.
World Boxing must also deliver competitions that meet Olympic standards for fairness, transparency and oversight. The inaugural world championships in Liverpool in September marked progress, but establishing a consistent global calendar will test the organisation's capacity.
Sports journalist Ualikhan Kosanbai said expectations are high. "We hope he will be the person who can restore order and ensure that every competition — whether a World Championships, the Olympic Games or the Asian Games — is held fairly, transparently and openly, with all the necessary conditions in place," he said.
Golovkin must now convert international recognition into institutional credibility, shifting from personal authority to systemic reform.