The International Boxing Organization ( IBO ) is a US based corporation that sanctions professional boxing matches and awards world and regional championships.
80-464: It is an independent organization not recognized by the "big four" governing bodies ( WBA , WBC , IBF and WBO ), who only recognize each other in their rankings and title unification rules. Despite this, as of 2023, IBO titles have been unified with titles of the other bodies in several weight divisions. The IBO was founded in 1988 and incorporated in Illinois in 1992 by John W. Daddono. The organization
160-642: A WBC and WBO unification on November 27. This was due to restrictions imposed by the WBO who refuse to sanction fights involving the Regular title, with the WBA respecting this and announcing on 17 August (before the ABC letter) that Figueroa would be stripped. This came after Figueroa was allowed to "unify" in his previous fight with then WBC champion Luis Nery on 15 May, as the WBC do not impose
240-409: A $ 3.75 million quarterly licensing payment to Authentic Brands Group. Two weeks later, on January 19, Authentic Brands Group terminated its licensing agreement. As a result, The Arena Group fought back by announcing that it would lay off the entire Sports Illustrated staff. In March 2024, Authentic Brands Group licensed the publishing rights to Minute Media in a 10-year deal, jointly announcing that
320-542: A 1981 Sports Illustrated article, a boxing judge claimed he was influenced by WBA President Gilberto Mendoza to judge certain fighters competing for their titles more favorably. The same article also discussed a variety of bribes paid to WBA officials to obtain championship bout opportunities, or higher placement within the organization's rankings. In a 1982 interview, boxing promoter Bob Arum claimed that he had to pay off WBA officials to obtain rankings for his fighters. Further support for allegations of this nature came in
400-530: A complex, documented rating formula in the 2000s. In 2015 for example, Ali Raymi had been rated number six when, in his service as a colonel in the Yemeni armed forces , he was killed. His death did not significantly hinder his rating position in the WBA however, as in a subsequent ranking he had only dropped to number eleven. In August 2021, a letter sent by the Association of Boxing Commissions (ABC) stating that
480-594: A designated Super champion as the Super title is only made defunct if the champion vacates. Since 2015, the WBA awards a customized version of their WBA Super champion belt to big fights involving a WBA championship. The WBA called this the Man of Triumph belt, named after the trophy awarded to the winner of the Mayweather vs. Pacquiao fight . The plate of the belt has the images of the two boxers fighting. Floyd Mayweather Jr. received
560-479: A fight with WBC champion Illunga Makabu , however, after concerns with making the cruiserweight limit, Makabu vs Merhy was called off on 8 August, and Merhy sent a formal letter to the WBA vacating his title 4 days later on 12 August, leaving Goulamirian as the sole champion. At heavyweight, Regular champion Trevor Bryan was ordered to face former Interim champion Daniel Dubois on 31 January 2022, with Dubois winning via KO on 11 June. Following this, Dubois
640-474: A final eliminator for the Super title, with Cañizales winning via technical decision on 9 June 2023, becoming mandatory to Kenshiro Teraji , who defeated Kyoguchi by TKO on 1 November 2022. Teraji defeated Cañizales via majority decision on 23 January 2024 to become sole champion. At flyweight, the removal of Interim champions meant Artem Dalakian was left as sole champion of the division. Despite never being upgraded to Super champion, Dalakian had been
720-418: A final eliminator to determine the mandatory challenger on 14 May 2022, with Ramirez winning by knockout. Bivol Vs Ramirez was then ordered on 11 July, with Bivol winning via unanimous decision on 5 November. At cruiserweight, Super champion Arsen Goulamirian and Regular champion Ryad Merhy had been ordered to fight on 19 July 2022 (a rematch of their 2018 Interim title fight). Merhy instead pursued
800-503: A majority of votes were held by Latin American nations and the organization headquarters had moved to Panama . After being located during the 1990s and early 2000s in Venezuela, the organization offices returned to Panama in 2007. As of August of 2024, boxing website BoxRec no longer recognizes WBA world title fights or world champions. The World Boxing Association can be traced back to
880-533: A mile, the first-ever time a mile had been run under four minutes. Both men and women have won the award, originally called "Sportsman of the Year" and renamed "Sportswoman of the Year" or "Sportswomen of the Year" when applicable; it is currently known as "Sportsperson of the Year." The 2017 winners of the award are Houston Texans defensive end J. J. Watt and Houston Astros second baseman Jose Altuve . Both athletes were recognized for their efforts in helping rebuild
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#1732852848884960-499: A similar partnership with Morning Read for golf coverage, with its website being merged into that of Sports Illustrated . It also partnered with iHeartMedia to distribute and co-produce podcasts . In September 2021, Maven, now known as The Arena Group, acquired the New Jersey–based sports news website The Spun , which would integrate into Sports Illustrated . In 2022, ABG announced several non-editorial ventures involving
1040-423: A single champion of their weight classes. At minimumweight , Regular champion Vic Saludar was ordered to face former Interim champion Erick Rosa on 26 August 2021, with Rosa winning the Regular title via split decision on 21 December. it was not until 29 September 2022, until the WBA officially ordered Rosa against Super champion Knockout CP Freshmart , however, after multiple failed attempts to make
1120-413: A unanimous decision victory to become champion on 20 August 2022. At lightweight, Regular champion Gervonta Davis was due to face former Interim champion Rolando Romero on 5 December 2021, but following withdrawal from Romero instead faced Isaac Cruz , winning by unanimous decision. The WBA then formally ordered Davis Vs Romero on 24 January 2022, with Davis winning via TKO on 28 May to retain
1200-457: A weekly magazine, especially during the winter. A number of advisers to Luce, including Life magazine's Ernest Havemann, tried to kill the idea, but Luce, who was not a sports fan, decided the time was right. Luce and editors of the planned magazine met in 1954 at Pine Lakes Country Club , the oldest golf course in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina . The course's pro shop has a plaque mentioning
1280-401: Is also credited with the conception and creation of the annual Swimsuit Issue , which quickly became, and remains, the most popular issue each year. In 1986, co-owned property HBO/Cannon Video had inked a pact to produce video versions of the magazine for $ 20 on the sell-through market, running just 30–45 minutes on the tape. In 1990, Time Inc. merged with Warner Communications to form
1360-668: Is the oldest and one of four major organizations which sanction professional boxing bouts, alongside the World Boxing Council (WBC), International Boxing Federation (IBF) and World Boxing Organization (WBO). The WBA awards its world championship title at the professional level. Founded in the United States in 1921 by 13 state representatives as the NBA, in 1962 it changed its name in recognition of boxing's growing popularity worldwide and began to gain other nations as members. By 1975,
1440-599: Is to be the next person to compete for one of the full championship titles once the champion is in a position to compete. In practice, however, this actually occurred rarely if ever and in 2019 the organization began awarding the WBA Gold title, for which no provision exists even within the organization's own governing documents. In December 2019 for example, they simultaneously recognized a WBA Super champion ( Anthony Joshua ), WBA champion ( Manuel Charr ), WBA interim champion ( Trevor Bryan ) and WBA Gold champion ( Robert Helenius ) in
1520-510: The Regular title. On 30 November 2023, Super champion Devin Haney relinquished his title ahead of his clash against WBC super-lightweight champion Regis Prograis , thus leaving Davis as sole champion. At super lightweight, Gervonta Davis vacated his Regular title on 8 December 2021, leaving then Super champion Josh Taylor as sole champion. Taylor was then ordered to face former Interim champion Alberto Puello on 9 March 2022, but
1600-704: The Russian invasion of Ukraine . As of 29 November 2024 Sports Illustrated Sports Illustrated ( SI ) is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel , it was the first magazine with a circulation of over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellence twice. It is also known for its annual swimsuit issue , which has been published since 1964, and has spawned other complementary media works and products. Owned until 2018 by Time Inc. , it
1680-616: The Sports Illustrated brand, including an apparel line for JCPenney "inspired by iconic moments in sports" (it was not the brand's first foray into clothing, as it launched a branded swimsuit line in conjunction with its Swimsuit Issue in 2018), and resort hotels in Orlando and Punta Cana . In September 2023, it delved deeper into the resort world through a new partnership with Travel + Leisure . On November 27, 2023, Futurism published an article alleging that Sports Illustrated
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#17328528488841760-650: The University of Colorado Boulder . In 1999, Sports Illustrated named Muhammad Ali the Sportsman of the Century at the Sports Illustrated ' s 20th Century Sports Awards in New York City 's Madison Square Garden . In 2015, the magazine renamed its Sportsman Legacy Award to the Sports Illustrated' s Muhammad Ali Legacy Award. The annual award was originally created in 2008 and honors former "sports figures who embody
1840-515: The "bonus piece". These well-written, in-depth articles helped to distinguish Sports Illustrated from other sports publications, and helped launch the careers of such legendary writers as Frank Deford , who in March 2010 wrote of Laguerre, "He smoked cigars and drank Scotch and made the sun move across the heavens ... His genius as an editor was that he made you want to please him, but he wanted you to do that by writing in your own distinct way." Laguerre
1920-439: The 1940s, these magazines were monthly, which prevented them from cover current events. There was no large-base, general, weekly sports magazine with a national following on actual active events. It was then that Time patriarch Henry Luce began considering whether his company should attempt to fill that gap. At the time, many believed sports was beneath the attention of serious journalism and did not think sports news could fill
2000-452: The 1980s and 1990s as two other organizations would have similar corruption exposed, including the conviction and imprisonment of IBF President Bob Lee and Graciano Rocchigiani 's successful civil prosecution of the WBC that resulted in the organization briefly filing for bankruptcy before reaching a settlement that saved it from collapse. Until the autumn of 2021, the WBA recognized up to four world champions in any given weight division , to
2080-629: The ABC letter. Light flyweight, super flyweight, bantamweight, featherweight, super featherweight, lightweight, super lightweight, welterweight, super welterweight, middleweight, and cruiserweight now no longer have a WBA Super champion as a Super champion vacating has led to either the Interim / Regular champion becoming full World champion or a fight being sanctioned for the World title without Super status. Minimumweight, super bantamweight, super middleweight, light heavyweight, and heavyweight all still have
2160-544: The Inter-Continental champion. If an IBO Inter-Continental champion successfully defends his title three times, he may receive a mandatory opportunity for the world title. As of October 19, 2024 World Boxing Association 23 August 1962 ; 62 years ago ( 1962-08-23 ) (as WBA) The World Boxing Association ( WBA ), formerly known as the National Boxing Association ( NBA ),
2240-660: The Time-Life news bureaux in Paris and London (for a time he ran both simultaneously), Laguerre attracted Henry Luce's attention in 1956 with his singular coverage of the Winter Olympic Games in Cortina d'Ampezzo , Italy, which became the core of SI' s coverage of those games. In May 1956, Luce brought Laguerre to New York to become the assistant managing editor of the magazine. He was named managing editor in 1960, and he more than doubled
2320-405: The WBA super welterweight title on 3 August, leaving Stanionis as the sole champion. At super welterweight, Regular champion Erislandy Lara was forced to vacate on 31 August 2021, leaving Super champion Jermell Charlo as sole champion. At middleweight, Super champion Gennady Golovkin was ordered to face Regular champion Erislandy Lara on 23 September 2022. On 9 March 2023, it
2400-409: The WBA granted special permission for Spence Jr. to defend his titles against former unified champion Keith Thurman , while Stanionis was instead ordered to face Vergil Ortiz Jr. , with the winners set to meet. However, an undisputed title fight between Spence and WBO champion Terence Crawford was announced on 25 May 2023, taking place on 29 July, with Crawford winning via TKO. Stanionis Vs Ortiz Jr.
2480-425: The WBA having multiple titles is "misleading to the public and the boxers". The ABC also stated that if the WBA fails to do a satisfactory action regarding the issue, they would recommend to its members: This could result in the WBA being blocked in the U.S. and will heavily impact WBA's business. The WBA in turn responded by declaring all of their Interim titles vacant. They then ordered tournaments to determine
International Boxing Organization - Misplaced Pages Continue
2560-554: The WBA initially rejected permission from Ugas to unify with WBC and IBF champion Errol Spence Jr ., while Butaev defeated James via TKO on 30 October to become Regular champion. On 8 February 2022 it was announced that Ugas and Spence Jr. would indeed unify on 16 April, followed by the announcement of Butaev vs Stanionis on the undercard on 21 February. Stanionis would go on to defeat Butaev via split decision to become Regular champion, while Spence Jr. defeated Ugas via TKO to become Super champion. Following this on 21 November,
2640-418: The WBA instead approved the rematch between Bermudez and former regular champion Carlos Cañizales 2 days earlier on 26 January. Bermudez vs Cañizales did not end up happening due to the latter's short-lived decision to move up to flyweight, and thus Kyoguchi-Bermudez took place on 10 June, with Kyoguchi winning by TKO. Former Interim champion Daniel Matellon was ordered to face Cañizales on September 30 in
2720-510: The WBA on 23 August 1962. Gilberto Mendoza was the President of the WBA from 1982 until his death in 2016, after which Gilberto Mendoza Jr. took over as president. In the 1990s, the WBA moved its central offices from Panama City , Panama, to Caracas , Venezuela. In January 2007, it returned its offices to Panama. As has been the case with all major boxing sanctioning organizations, the WBA has been plagued with charges of corrupt practices. In
2800-427: The WBA ordered the bout between Wood and Super champion Léo Santa Cruz . On 19 July, the WBA rejected a request from Santa Cruz to unify with WBC champion Rey Vargas , insisting he had to fight Wood, which Santa Cruz accepted 2 days later on 21 July. On 12 August, it was announced that Santa Cruz and Wood had reached an agreement, and thus purse bids were canceled. On 24 August, the WBA announced they had approved
2880-470: The WBA stated he could only hold one belt. This left Super champion Canelo Alvarez as sole champion. At light heavyweight, the removal of Interim champions meant Super champion Dmitry Bivol became sole champion. Former Interim champion Robin Krasniqi lost in a rematch to Dominic Boesel on 10 October 2021, with Boesel becoming #1 challenger for Bivol. Boesel fought #2 ranked Gilberto Ramirez in
2960-409: The WBA's primary champion since winning the title in 2018, due to the absence of a Super champion since 2015. Dalakian was ordered to face former Interim champion Luis Concepción on 19 August 2021, whom he defeated by TKO on 20 November to remain sole champion. At super flyweight, Super champion Juan Francisco Estrada was ordered to face Regular champion Joshua Franco on 9 February, with
3040-429: The circulation by instituting a system of departmental editors, redesigning the internal format, and inaugurating the unprecedented use in a news magazine of full-color photographic coverage of the week's sports events. He was also one of the first to sense the rise of national interest in professional football . Laguerre also instituted the innovative concept of one long story at the end of every issue, which he called
3120-517: The city of Houston following Hurricane Harvey in addition to Altuve being a part of the Astros team that won the franchise's first World Series in 2017. The 2018 winners are the Golden State Warriors as a team for winning their third NBA Title in four years. The 2021 winner is Tom Brady for his Super Bowl 55 win. The 2023 winner is Deion Sanders for his coaching of the football team at
3200-409: The company's license. Arena, in turn, laid off the publication's editorial staff. In March 2024, ABG licensed the publishing rights to Minute Media in a 10-year deal, jointly announcing that the print and digital editions would be revived by rehiring some of the editorial staff. In May 2024, Sports Illustrated failed to deliver a print copy of the publication for the month to its subscribers for
3280-478: The controversial decision in the Gabriel Maestre vs. Mykal Fox fight on August 7, 2021, amid immense public pressure, the WBA finally began eliminating all interim titles in the attempt to return to a single champion per weight division. They reverted to issuing interim championships in 2024. The organization has further garnered negative attention with respect to its ranking of boxers, in spite of having adopted
International Boxing Organization - Misplaced Pages Continue
3360-581: The current magazine was launched on August 9, 1954. In 1936, Stuart Scheftel created Sports Illustrated with a target market of sportsmen. He published the magazine monthly from 1936 to 1942. The magazine focused on golf, tennis, and skiing with articles on the major sports. He then sold the name to Dell Publications, which released Sports Illustrated in 1949 and this version lasted six issues before closing. Dell's version focused on major sports (baseball, basketball, boxing) and competed on magazine racks against Sports and other monthly sports magazines. During
3440-409: The de facto championship title. Some world champions have been upgraded to WBA Super champion status without winning another organization's title, among them Floyd Mayweather Jr. , Chris John , Anselmo Moreno and Manny Pacquiao ; or upon defending their WBA title five or more times. Upon awarding a WBA Super championship, the regular world champion status is deemed vacant, whereupon it is filled by
3520-705: The digital media company theMaven, Inc. under a 10-year contract, with Ross Levinsohn as CEO. The company had backed a bid by Junior Bridgeman to acquire SI . In preparation for the closure of the sale to ABG and Maven, The Wall Street Journal reported that there would be Sports Illustrated employee layoffs, which was confirmed after the acquisition had closed. In October 2019, editor-in-chief Chris Stone stepped down. Later that month, Sports Illustrated announced its hiring of veteran college sports writer Pat Forde . In January 2020, it announced an editorial partnership with The Hockey News , focusing on syndication of NHL-related coverage. In 2021, it announced
3600-475: The editors to merge the best color with the latest news. By 1967, the magazine was printing 200 pages of "fast color" a year; in 1983, SI became the first American full-color newsweekly. An intense rivalry developed between photographers , particularly Walter Iooss and Neil Leifer , to get a decisive cover shot that would be on newsstands and in mailboxes only a few days later. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, during Gilbert Rogin 's term as Managing Editor,
3680-516: The feature stories of Frank Deford became the magazine's anchor. "Bonus pieces" on Pete Rozelle , Woody Hayes , Bear Bryant , Howard Cosell and others became some of the most quoted sources about these figures, and Deford established a reputation as one of the best writers of the time. After more than a decade of steady losses, the magazine's fortunes finally turned around in the 1960s when Andre Laguerre became its managing editor. A European correspondent for Time, Inc., who later became chief of
3760-574: The fight going to purse bid on 19 April. Despite it being announced on 17 May that the fight would take place on 16 July, Estrada was disowned and stripped by the Championships Committee on 11 August for pursuing a rematch with Román González , leaving Franco as the sole champion of the division. At bantamweight, Regular champion Guillermo Rigondeaux was stripped of his title on 14 August 2021, after facing then WBO champion John Riel Casimero . The WBA announced its refusal to sanction
3840-436: The fight on 23 July, in respect of restrictions placed on Regular titles by the WBO, and declared Rigondeaux would have to request to be ranked in order to follow through with the fight, in which his Regular title would be declared vacant. Super champion Naoya Inoue then became sole champion. At super bantamweight, Brandon Figueroa was stripped of his Regular title on 2 December 2021, after facing Stephen Fulton in
3920-448: The fight, Rosa officially vacated his Regular title on 15 January 2024 to move up to light flyweight , leaving CP Freshmart as sole champion. At light flyweight, Super champion Hiroto Kyoguchi and Regular champion Esteban Bermudez had already been ordered to fight prior to the ABC letter on 10 June 2021, but complications meant it was not until 28 January 2022 when purse bids were due to be held, however injury to Kyoguchi meant
4000-562: The first all-women winning group in 1958. Maya Moore of the WNBA 's Minnesota Lynx was the inaugural winner of the award in 2017. Since 1954, Sports Illustrated has annually presented the Sportsperson of the Year award to "the athlete or team whose performance that year most embodies the spirit of sportsmanship and achievement." Roger Bannister won the first-ever Sportsman of the Year award thanks to his record-breaking time of 3:59.4 for
4080-570: The first gold-plated version of the belt while Manny Pacquiao was awarded a one-time rhodium-plated version. Other recipients of the custom gold-plated belt are Anthony Joshua, Vasyl Lomachenko , Manny Pacquiao, Oleksandr Usyk , Canelo Álvarez and Callum Smith . The WBA signed a cooperation agreement with the Russian-led amateur governing body International Boxing Association in 2022. The WBA also reinstated Russian and Belarusian boxers to its rankings after they were initially removed after
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#17328528488844160-599: The first time in the magazine's 70-year history, according to the New York Post ’s Josh Kosman (May 17, 2024). As of November 2024, Sports Illustrated has not mailed any print issues to its subscribers for seven months (the last magazine delivered being the April 2024 issue), because its former publisher refuses to turn over the subscriber list to the new publisher, according to Sports Business Journal (May 20, 2024). There were two previous magazines named Sports Illustrated before
4240-523: The heavyweight division. There have even been instances where different WBA World Champions have defended versions of the same title, in the same weight class, on the same date, and even within the same event. On September 14, 2024 for example, Caleb Plant defeated Trevor McCumby to earn recognition as the WBA's Interim World Super Middleweight championship in an event that was headlined by Canelo Alvarez , who defended his WBA Super World Super Middleweight championship against Edgar Berlanga . Following
4320-542: The ideals of sportsmanship, leadership and philanthropy as vehicles for changing the world." Ali first appeared on the magazine's cover in 1963 and went on to be featured on numerous covers during his storied career. His widow, Lonnie Ali, is consulted when choosing a recipient. In 2017, football quarterback Colin Kaepernick was honored with the Award, which was presented by Beyoncé . In 2018, WWE professional wrestler John Cena
4400-471: The magazine seemed caught between two opposing views of its audience. Much of the subject matter was directed at upper-class activities such as yachting , polo and safaris , but upscale would-be advertisers were unconvinced that sports fans were a significant part of their market. In 1965, offset printing began. This allowed the color pages of the magazine to be printed overnight, not only producing crisper and brighter images, but also finally enabling
4480-408: The media conglomerate Time Warner . In 2014, Time Inc. was spun off from Time Warner. In 2018, the magazine was sold to Meredith Corporation by means of its acquisition of parent company Time Inc. . Meredith, however, planned to sell Sports Illustrated due to not aligning with its lifestyle properties. Authentic Brands Group announced its intent to acquire Sports Illustrated for $ 110 million
4560-433: The meetings, and the plaque also states that the first issue was given to the course. It is on display there. Myrtle Beach Area Golf Course Owners Association executive director Tracy Conner credits the magazine with making Myrtle Beach a golf destination. Many at Time-Life scoffed at Luce's idea; in his Pulitzer Prize –winning biography, Luce and His Empire , W. A. Swanberg wrote that the company's intellectuals dubbed
4640-479: The next year, stating that it would leverage its brand and other assets for new opportunities that "stay close to the DNA and the heritage of the brand." Upon the announcement, Meredith would enter into a licensing agreement to continue as publisher of the Sports Illustrated editorial operations for at least the next two years. In June 2019, the rights to publish the Sports Illustrated editorial operations were licensed to
4720-422: The organization as a separate championship. On March 5, 2021, Claressa Shields became the inaugural WBA Super women's champion at light middleweight. The WBA further complicated this from time to time by recognizing an interim champion , ostensibly in cases where a designated world champion is, for some reason, prohibited from making a timely defense of their title. Under such conditions, the interim title holder
4800-682: The original National Boxing Association, organized in 1921. The first bout it recognized was the Jack Dempsey–Georges Carpentier heavyweight championship bout in New Jersey . The NBA was formed by representatives from 13 American states , including Sam Milner, to counterbalance the influence that the New York State Athletic Commission (NYSAC) wielded. The NBA and the NYSAC sometimes crowned different "world champions" in
4880-492: The point of rendering it technically impossible under certain conditions for a WBA world champion to even hold sole recognition from the organization as its champion in a division. The most prominent designation is that of the WBA Super champion, which was created in 2000 following a suggestion by Lennox Lewis after he was forced to relinquish his WBA heavyweight title prior to his defense against Michael Grant . This distinction
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#17328528488844960-536: The previously rejected unification between Santa Cruz and Vargas, as well as a title defense for Wood against Mauricio Lara , with the winners set to fight each other. Wood, who was due to fight Lara on 24 September, pulled out with an injury on 19 September, and on 30 September the WBA ruled Wood must face Santa Cruz in his comeback fight, and refused to grant any additional exceptions. Purse bids were scheduled for 12 December, however did not take place due to Santa Cruz relinquishing his Super title and leaving Wood as
5040-441: The print and digital editions would be revived by rehiring some of the editorial staff. In 1956, Sports Illustrated began presenting annual awards to fashion or clothing designers who had excelled in the field of sportswear/activewear. The first ASDAs of 1956, presented to Claire McCardell with a separate Designer of the Year award to Rudi Gernreich , were chosen following a vote of 200 American top retailers. The following year,
5120-437: The proposed magazine "Muscle", "Jockstrap", and "Sweat Socks". Launched on August 9, 1954, it was not profitable (and would not be for 12 years) and not particularly well-run at first, but Luce's timing was good. The popularity of spectator sports in the United States was about to explode, and that popularity came to be driven largely by three things: economic prosperity, television, and Sports Illustrated . The early issues of
5200-417: The report, a spokesperson for Sports Illustrated claimed that the affected articles were product reviews written without the involvement of AI by AdVon Commerce, a third-party company who they claimed used pseudonyms to "protect author privacy" and had already severed ties with; meanwhile, writers and editors at the magazine sharply criticized the alleged practices. On January 5, 2024, The Arena Group missed
5280-595: The same division, leading to confusion about who was the real champion. The International Boxing Research Organization describes the early NBA as follows: Originally more comparable to the present American Association of Boxing Commissions than to its offspring and successor, the NBA sanctioned title bouts, published lists of outstanding challengers, withdrew titular recognition, but did not attempt to appoint its own title bout officials or otherwise impose its will on championship fights. It also did not conduct purse bids or collect "sanctioning fees." The NBA officially became
5360-513: The same restrictions on the Regular title. This left Super champion Murodjohn Akhmadaliev as sole champion. Former Interim champion Ra’eese Aleem did not move forward any with WBA sanctioned fight and was subsequently dropped from the initial mandatory position. At featherweight, Regular champion Leigh Wood was ordered to face former Interim champion Michael Conlan on 27 August 2021, with Wood winning by KO on 12 March 2022. On 6 April,
5440-521: The sole champion of the division. At super featherweight, Gervonta Davis vacated his Super title on 28 August 2021, leaving then Regular champion Roger Gutiérrez as the sole champion. Gutiérrez had been ordered to face former Interim champion Chris Colbert on 15 August, but following Gutierrez's withdrawal, replacement Héctor Garcia defeated Colbert via unanimous decision to become mandatory challenger on 26 February 2022. The WBA thus ordered Gutiérrez vs Garcia on 27 June, with Garcia winning
5520-414: The sport. From 2014 the organization now employs Boxrec , the independent boxing records keeper and computerized rankings website to produce IBO's rankings. The IBO permits only one world champion per weight division. "We have never had more than one champion per weight division nor will we", according to its president Ed Levine. In addition to world champions, IBO recognizes regional champions, including
5600-451: The voting pool had increased to 400 fashion industry experts, including Dorothy Shaver and Stanley Marcus , when Sydney Wragge and Bill Atkinson received the awards. The Italian designer Emilio Pucci was the first non-American to receive the award in 1961. The awards were presented up until at least 1963, when Marc Bohan received the prize. Other winners include Jeanne S. Campbell , Bonnie Cashin , and Rose Marie Reid who formed
5680-431: Was announced that Golovkin had vacated the Super title, leaving Lara as sole champion. Former Interim champion Chris Eubank Jr. did not move forward with any WBA sanctioned fight and was thus dropped from the initial mandatory position. At super middleweight, Regular champion David Morrell opted to vacate his title on 31 August 2024 after winning the vacant Regular title at light heavyweight on 3 August, after
5760-446: Was expected that Romero would face the winner as soon as he was able, he instead defended his title against Isaac Cruz on 30 March, losing via TKO. At welterweight, the WBA ordered a 4-man box off on 16 September 2021, consisting of Super champion Yordenis Ugas against Eimantas Stanionis and Regular champion Jamal James against Radzhab Butaev , with the winners set to face each other to determine one champion. On 20 October,
5840-490: Was honored with the award. For a 2002 list of the top 200 Division I sports colleges in the U.S., see footnote. The following list contains the athletes with most covers. The magazine's cover is the basis of a sports myth known as the Sports Illustrated Cover Jinx . Most covers by athlete, 1954–2016 Most covers by team, 1954 – May 2008 Most covers by sport, 1954–2009 Celebrities on
5920-452: Was initially reserved for WBA champions who are simultaneously recognized by the WBC, IBF or WBO. A WBA Super champion is afforded special consideration by the organization with respect to meeting mandatory defense obligations to maintain championship recognition, but it also has opened the door for the organization to recognize a separate world champion, commonly referred to as the Regular champion; creating confusion among fans as to who holds
6000-497: Was later moved to Florida in 1997 and incorporated in Florida at that time. Ed Levine, who continues to serve as the organization's President became a partner and President of the IBO at that time. The organization implemented a computerized system 'The Independent World Boxing Rankings' in the late 1990s that removed subjective elements from the ratings in an effort to bring more credibility to
6080-808: Was ordered to face Super champion Oleksandr Usyk on 12 December, with the fight taking place on 26 August 2023, where Usyk won via KO to become sole champion. In January 2024, the WBA once again began to sanction fights for the Interim title in weight divisions which already had a sole WBA champion. Only 1 fight has been sanctioned for a new Regular champion, between reigning super middleweight Regular champion David Morrell vs Radivoje Kalajdzic . Morrell defeated Kalajdzic on 3 August before vacating his super middleweight Regular title to remain at light heavyweight. As of August 2024, super flyweight, super featherweight, super lightweight, super welterweight, light heavyweight, and heavyweight have multiple WBA champions despite having achieved sole champion status following
6160-477: Was publishing AI-generated articles credited to authors who were also AI-generated; the latter practice apparently extended to their profile photos, which the website alleged were sourced from online marketplaces selling such photos. After Futurism reached out to The Arena Group, the magazine purportedly removed some of the implicated writers and republished their articles under other AI-generated authors with notes disclaiming its staff's involvement. In response to
6240-512: Was scheduled to take place on 8 July following a delay from 29 April, but was again called off following medical issues with Ortiz Jr. Stanionis instead faced former Interim champion Gabriel Maestre , who was not included in the WBA's initial box off despite being the final Interim champion before the ABC Letter. Stanionis defeated Maestre via UD on 4 May 2024. On 31 August, Terence Crawford vacated his welterweight WBA Super title after winning
6320-426: Was sold to Authentic Brands Group (ABG) following the sale of Time Inc. to Meredith Corporation . The Arena Group (formerly theMaven, Inc.) was subsequently awarded a 10-year license to operate the Sports Illustrated –branded editorial operations, while ABG licenses the brand for other non-editorial ventures and products. In January 2024, The Arena Group missed a quarterly licensing payment, leading ABG to terminate
6400-405: Was stripped on 14 May for failing to sign the contract. Puello was then ordered to face Batyr Akhmedov on 12 June following a panel to determine the next challenger, with Puello winning via split decision on 20 August to become champion. The Interim title was contested by Ohara Davies and Ismael Barroso on 6 January 2024, following an injury sustained to champion Rolando Romero . While it
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