Factbox on boxing

Boxing has been part of the modern Olympics since the 1904 St Louis Games.

Boxing is one of the oldest sports. It was part of the original Olympics, although by modern standards the ancient Greek version was brutal ? boxers were not matched by weight, and bouts went on uninterrupted until one fighter was knocked out or admitted defeat by raising his hand. Boxing has been part of the modern Olympics since the 1904 St Louis Games. Since then, there have been numerous changes to its rules, including several revisions of the weight categories. Five ringside judges were introduced in 1960 to score matches. In 1992, electronic scoring was brought in as part of a package of reforms to judging which was embroiled in controversy in Seoul four years earlier. Boxing is one of the last Olympic sports to admit only amateurs although many previous champions have gone on to become successful professionals, including Muhammad Ali, who as Cassius Clay won the light-heavyweight gold medal in Rome in 1960. Unlike in professional boxing, Olympic boxers must wear headguards.

Although there have been women's boxing competitions since the 1990s, only men compete in Olympic boxing. As in ancient times, Olympic boxing is unseeded, with boxing pairs drawn by lot. Fighters must be between 17 and 34 years old. Two bronze medals are awarded in each of the 11 weight categories.

The tournament will feature 286 boxers. Each country can enter only one boxer per class.

Light-flyweight (48kg): Yan Bhartelemy (Cuba) Flyweight (51kg): Yuriorkis Gamboa (Cuba) Bantamweight (54kg): Guillermo Rigondeaux (Cuba) Featherweight (57kg): Alexei Tichtchenko (Russia) Lightweight (60kg): Mario Kindelan (Cuba) Light-welterweight (64kg): Manus Boonjumnong (Thailand) Welterweight (69kg): Bakhtiyar Artayev (Kazakhstan) Middleweight (75kg): Gaydarbek Gaydarbekov (Russia) Light-heavyweight (81kg): Andre Ward (USA) Heavyweight (91kg): Odlanier Solis (Cuba) Super-heavyweight (+91kg): Alexander Povetkin (Russia)

Aug. 23 ? Flyweight, featherweight, light-welterweight, middleweight, heavyweight Aug. 24 ? Light-flyweight, bantamweight, lightweight, welterweight, light-heavyweight, super-heavyweight

Workers' Gymnasium *Reuters