Though boxing is recognised as a sport within the Olympics and other classes of competition, this does not inform its original status. Boxing in its modern form is greatly different to its original incarnation, which was very basically bare-knuckle fighting unburdened by rules. The sport, as it is carried out today, is borne out of the need for rules in order to control the participants and determine the winner without serious injury.
History
Records of fist fights have been found as far back as the 12th century in Italy when the fashion of wearing a weapon would fluctuate. In the 16th century, the sport of bare-knuckle boxing emerged in England and became known as prizefighting. Fights of this time were effectively a free-for-all, allowing opponents of varying size, weight and ability to square up to each other and brawl until one could no longer continue, sometimes leading to death. It was during this period that the term ‘boxing’ first came to be recognised piecemeal as an official name for the sport.
Rules
Despite having an official name, it took longer for boxing to obtain any official rules, and those that did, came gradually. The 18th century arrived before the first rules were implemented, which came about through practice rather than being written down. Known as Broughton’s Rules after champion boxer, Jack Broughton, it was decided that padded gloves should be used during a fight, hitting below the waist was banned and a man would be deemed unable to continue if he remained down for 30 seconds. Hitting below the belt was also classed as against the rules. Though there was some documenting of rules in the late 18th century, the official Prize Ring Rules were drawn up in the early 19th century. In addition to outlining what actions would be deemed fouls, such head-butting and hitting below the waist, the size of the ring was also specified. This was superseded by the Marquess of Queensberry Rules, which developed what was already in place.
Official Rules
The early 20th century saw amateur boxing being included in the Olympics, which gave the sport more legitimacy after the banning of bare-knuckle boxing. The regulations set out in the Queensberry Rules have been extended for professional boxing matches, ensuring safety and the ability to determine a clear winner between similarly matched opponents.
Quelle des Bildes: Tom Biker – Fotolia.com