Golden Gloves

The Golden Gloves is the name given to annual competitions for amateur boxing in the United States, where a small pair of golden boxing gloves[1] are awarded. The Golden Gloves is a term used to refer to the National Golden Gloves competition, but can also represent several other amateur tournaments, including regional golden gloves tournaments and other notable tournaments such as the Intercity Golden Gloves, the Chicago Golden Gloves, and the New York Golden Gloves.

For other uses, see Golden Gloves (disambiguation).
Golden Gloves
Golden Gloves
First event1928
Occur everyYear
Parent organizationUSA Boxing
WebsiteGoldenGlovesusa.com
USABoxing.org
A pair of hanging golden boxing gloves is an iconic Golden Gloves image dating back to the late 1920s.
2011 Golden Gloves Boxing Championships in San Antonio

History

Arch Ward, sports editor of the Chicago Tribune, came up with the idea of a citywide, Chicago amateur boxing tournament in 1923, and gained sponsorship from the Tribune in 1927. An annual tournament was held between Chicago and New York. In later years the idea was taken up by other cities, and a national tournament was held.[2] Along with the New York Golden Gloves, the Chicago tournament was viewed as one of the two elite Golden Gloves Championships in the United States. Winners from selected states and regions headed to Chicago to meet in the Chicago Golden Gloves, while winners from other sections of the U.S. faced each other in the New York Golden Gloves tournaments. Champions from the Chicago tournament went on to face champions from the New York tournament in the Intercity Golden Gloves tournament, and thus the Intercity Golden Gloves served as the National Tournament of Champions[3] held in the Square Garden Chicago and Chicago Stadium. The Intercity Golden Gloves tournament ran from 1928 to 1961, with the event being held at famed venues including the Chicago Coliseum.[3]

The National Golden Gloves[4] contest began in 1962 and continues to be the most highly regarded amateur boxing tournament in the United States.[3] It is sponsored and controlled by the Golden Gloves Association of America, Inc. Winners from 32 regional Golden Gloves competitions, coming up in regional teams of all weight classes, compete in the national competition, called the Golden Gloves Tournament of Champions. This is held once a year, and a new tournament site is selected annually. The U.S. Golden Gloves program is currently organized on a territorial basis to give all sections of the country representation. All tournaments are planned, promoted and directed by the Golden Gloves Charities and within the limits of the amateur boxing code.[2] Many amateur Golden Gloves participants went on to become professional boxers, including Joe Louis, Muhammad Ali, Joe Frazier, Barney Ross and Iran Barkley.[5]

The Golden Gloves are open to all non-professional pugilists age 17-34 who are United States citizens.[6] There is also a Silver Gloves amateur tournament, for amateur pugilists aged 10 to 15.[2]

Hierarchy

To compete nationally, a contender must pass through the following levels:

Open crown is contended by winners of the local Golden Gloves at:

As many local gloves were established well before the National Golden Gloves existed, and no unification had been undertook for a long time, as part of a tradition, different states historically had various weight class margins (171 to 178 for light heavyweight upper limit, 200 to 201 for heavyweight limit).

USA franchises
  • Alabama Golden Gloves
  • Buffalo Golden Gloves[7]
  • Chicago Golden Gloves[8]
  • Cincinnati Golden Gloves
  • Cleveland Golden Gloves[9]
  • Colorado-New Mexico Golden Gloves
  • Detroit Golden Gloves
  • Florida Golden Gloves[10]
  • Hawaii Golden Gloves
  • Indiana Golden Gloves[11]
  • Iowa Golden Gloves
  • Kansas City Golden Gloves[12]
  • Kansas-Oklahoma Golden Gloves
  • Knoxville Golden Gloves
  • Michigan Golden Gloves[13]
  • Mid-South Golden Gloves
  • Nevada Golden Gloves
  • New England Golden Gloves
  • New Jersey Golden Gloves [14]
  • New York Metro Golden Gloves[15]
  • Omaha Golden Gloves
  • Oregon Golden Gloves
  • Pacific North West Golden Gloves
  • Pennsylvania Golden Gloves[16]
  • Rocky Mountain Golden Gloves[17][18]
  • St. Louis Golden Gloves[19]
  • Syracuse Golden Gloves
  • Texas Golden Gloves[20]
  • Toledo Golden Gloves
  • Tri-State Golden Gloves
  • Upper Midwest Golden Gloves
  • Washington, D.C. Golden Gloves
  • Wisconsin Golden Gloves

Around the world

Other countries have similar amateur boxing awards, such as Mexico's Guantes De Oro (literally "Gloves of Gold" in Spanish).

Diamond Belt

In the past, certain amateur tournaments would award the victor with a Diamond Belt as recognition of their amateur championship status. These tournaments were sponsored by various organizations and newspapers in the United States, with the Philadelphia Inquirer being one of the more notable. Notable Diamond Belt winners include George Foreman, Bobby Chacon, Jimmy McCarter, Logan McElroy, and Lou Brooks.[5]

Pacific North West Golden Gloves

Four major Golden Gloves annual tournaments that have taken place include BC Golden Gloves,[21] Tacoma Golden Gloves, Seattle Golden Gloves and Oregon Golden Gloves.

Some notable Canadian boxers to win championships in two or more of the four locations are Frank Albert Scott, Freddy Stephen Fuller, Earl McLeay, Dick Findlay and Clint Page from the sixties.[22]

BC Golden Gloves

The annual Golden Gloves tournament in British Columbia, Canada has been a regular event since 1939. The first BC Golden Gloves champions were Alan Dunn, Bob Hickey, Eric Burnell, Henry Devine, Kenny Lindsay, Phil Vickery and Wayne Morris.[23]

Regional and special tournaments

From time to time, there have been special tournaments or regional Golden Gloves tournaments. One that operated from 1954 to the early Sixties was the Vancouver Island Golden Gloves.[24] The first Vancouver Island Golden Boy was Victoria's Bert Wilkinson in 1954.[25] Some of the history was documented in various issues of the Vancouver Island Boxing News in 1983, and the BC Amateur Boxing News between November 1983 and January 1986. A poster of the 1954 tournament and a photo of Bert Wilkinson were recently used in a video for the induction ceremony of the Greater Victoria Hall of Fame.

See also

Lists of former Golden Gloves champions, by division:

References
  1. golden boxing gloves
  2. "Golden Gloves: Keeping it Simple – theboxingtribune.com". theboxingtribune.com. Retrieved 2016-04-18.
  3. "Chicago Golden Gloves History".
  4. The National Golden Gloves
  5. "Boxing: Golden Gloves - WTTW". www.wttw.com. Retrieved 2016-04-18.
  6. "GOLDEN GLOVES OF AMERICA RULE MODIFICATIONS" (PDF). Golden Gloves of America, Inc.
  7. "Buffalo Golden Gloves Boxing - Buffalo New York Chapter". Buffalogoldengloves.com. Retrieved 2013-05-18.
  8. "Chicago Golden Gloves, Chicago, IL". Chicagogoldengloves.com. 2012-06-12. Retrieved 2013-05-18.
  9. "Welcome to the Golden Gloves". Clevelandamateurgg.com. Archived from the original on 2013-05-27. Retrieved 2013-05-18.
  10. "floridagoldengloves.org". floridagoldengloves.org. Archived from the original on 2013-06-12. Retrieved 2013-05-18.
  11. "Official Indiana Golden Gloves Boxing Organization". indianagoldengloves.org. Retrieved 2014-04-10.
  12. "Kansas City Golden Gloves - Home". Kcgoldengloves.com. Retrieved 2013-05-18.
  13. Racecol Web Solutions. "Michigan Golden Gloves". Michigangoldenglovesboxing.com. Retrieved 2013-05-18.
  14. "boxing-fanclub". boxing-fanclub. Retrieved 18 March 2018.
  15. "USA Boxing Metro". USA Boxing Metro. Retrieved 2013-05-18.
  16. "Pennsylvania Golden Gloves". Pagoldengloves.com. Retrieved 2013-05-18.
  17. http://www.utahgoldengloves.org
  18. "Rocky Mountain Golden Gloves". Rocky Mountain Golden Gloves. Retrieved 2013-05-18.
  19. "Saint Louis Golden Gloves - Home". Stlgg.com. Retrieved 2013-05-18.
  20. "Welcome". Texas Golden Gloves. Retrieved 2013-05-18.
  21. BC Amateur Boxing News
  22. "Vancouver Sun", January 27, 1968
  23. 1984 BC Amateur Boxing Annual, editor Brian Zelley, president George Armson, September 1984
  24. Howard Curling, former Vancouver Island Amateur Boxing Commissioner
  25. The Victoria Daily Times, 1954
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