Will headgear removal for the amateur scene help American boxers?

Tyson has a good chin??? Lol.

I would add McCall.

 

i hate it, these guys down here with 10 oz gloves getting head butts and eye injuries.. its a shame they not getting paid

 

Americans are glass jawed, so no it will be worse.

 

Some fighters can punch, others can't. It all depends. I think if anything I think we should consider a body only approach in amateurs for certain age groups.

 

Yeah but the US are less known for their sluggers than their slicksters - such success as the US ams. have had in the last coupla decades is exemplified in FMJ and Ward - hardly considered sluggers.

In fact the heavy hitters and pressure guys of recent years seem to be those coming out of the former Soviets and their success seems likely to continue for the foreseeable future, but this has far less to do with headgear and gloves than the abysmal state of funding and training provision for US amateurs.

 

I dont like the idea of this.

 

Removing headgear would surely expose their abysmal glass jaws even more????

 

I think he's mentioning Americans because as you say they've been weak in the amateurs.

 

Removing headgear will (over time) result in better transitions between the amateurs and the pros...defense, prevention of headbutts, better head movement, peripheral vision, etc.

Also keep in mind that this only applies to SOME fighters with at least 20 fights...

Also keep in mind that there are almost no professional amateur boxing coaches in America. Countries with better amateur systems have exactly that...better systems. Professional administrators and coaches, good benefits for fighters, etc. In America boxing is a part-time activity even for the guys who are at the very top. And USA Boxing is horrifically mismanaged.

 

I think the fighters want it just as bad as anywhere else but the developmental system is flawed.

the '92 Olympics had the first computer scoring (in Olympics, not worlds), which American coaches hated, didn't understand, and didn't try to adapt. after getting beat at the new game for a couple of Olympic cycles, American boxers (and a few coaches) began to adapt. its all a game of catch up. now the system has changed back to rules that should benefit a traditional American boxer (like a holyfield, or sugar ray) but the reality is this is a new game of catch up (the coaches from 30-40 years ago are not what we have now).

and you're right, other international coaches have adapted their strategies to rule changes, and developed systems (including your point of US coaches only work with the easiest and toughest kids). the US is behind developmentally.

 

Only thing I can see it helping is peripheral vision. I don't like wearing headgear.

 

PRE 90's, by my theoretical opinion (PRE-computer scoring, which I believe was the 20 point must system, based on punches landed instead of "judging" like we have in the pro's and the new amateur scoring system).

1976 had ray leonard and both spinks brothers
1980 USA did not participate
1984 had lots of USA (taylor, whitaker, holyfield, biggs) medals but soviets and cuba banned those games
1988 was roy jones
1992 de la hoya (last time Olympic boxing was shown in primetime on a big network, which may contribute to a lack of exposure to youth and decline in membership, where coaching then becomes survival based instead of innovative and thrival based)
1996 david reid