The Int'l Boxing Association released rules this week that stated that elite male boxers who “compete internationally no longer will be allowed to use headgear in competition,” according to Shirley Wang of the WALL STREET JOURNAL. The AIBA "mandated banning headgear in amateur boxing competition in an effort to reduce concussions and head trauma, a decision that is thought to be a first in the sports world.” The rules go into effect June 1. Removing the use of helmets or headgear “has been discussed as a counterintuitive way to decrease brain injuries, with the idea being that athletes wouldn't use their heads as weapons or hit as hard if they didn't feel as protected.” In boxing, there also is the “belief that headgear makes it harder to see to the side to avoid blows, and makes the head a bigger target.” AIBA Medical Commission Chair Charles Butler said that concussions are not "much of an issue in women and younger fighters who often lack the strength to bring on concussions in competitors, and they should continue to wear headgear to protect themselves from cuts.” Wang notes headgear “was added to amateur boxing in response to health concerns in the 1980s.” But Butler after collecting data “on some 15,000 boxer rounds,” found that in the “7,352 rounds that took place with boxers wearing headgear, the rate of concussion was 0.38%, compared with 0.17% per boxer per round in the 7,545 rounds without headgear.” The IOC has “made no decision yet about the use of headgear in Olympic boxing competition” (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 3/15).
