National Golden Gloves Didn’t Play By The Rules

Officials at the National Golden Gloves Tournament didn’t use the required Olympic-style electronic scoring system and not all bouts had rounds that went the required three minutes.

“We could have canceled the event, as USA Boxing sanctions it,” said Anthony Bartkowksi, the executive director of USA Boxing.

The National Golden Gloves Tournament, made up of regional champions from around the country, took place April 29 through May 5 in Mesquite, Nev.   

Bartkowski said in a letter—posted online April 23—the National Golden Gloves Tournament should be used by amateur boxers to get ready for international competition, including the Olympics. That means using international rules in the qualifiers to get fighters ready, he said.

But this year, because of the controversy, USA Boxing officials would not invite winners of the 2012 National Golden Gloves Tournament to the 2013 USA Boxing National Championships.

One boxing coach from Crystal Lake advised officials with the National Golden Gloves to follow the sanctioning body’s rules.

“The USA Boxing sanction means everything,” said Gary Dobry, owner of the . “Without it, the Golden Gloves would be like a tough-man contest in a local bar.”

Shawn Simpson, in the 114-pound class, and Alex Martin, at 152 pounds, are members of the Chicago Golden Gloves Team that came in first place in the 2012 National Golden Gloves. They won’t be asked to next year's USA Boxing National Championships because of the issue.

Ted Gimza, a franchise delegate with the Chicago Golden Gloves, said he was not happy about keeping the Chicago champions out of next year’s tournament.

Gimza defended the National Golden Gloves’ decision to not use computerized scoring. He said there were electronic glitches in the scoring system. He added that some of the bouts at nationals, up through the semifinals, had two-minute rounds to keep the tournament from going late into the night.

“It was a time consideration,” Gimza said.