Boxing - The History, Rules & Equipment

Boxing is a renowned sport which is viewed all over the world by thousands of people. Boxing is a combat sport in which two people, male or female of similar weight fight each other with their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee and is normally played in a series of one to three minute rounds. There are three ways to win one way is by knock out meaning the opponent is unable to get up before the referee counts to ten seconds or if the opponent is considered too injured to continue meaning a Technical Knockout. If there is no stoppage of the fight before the end of the rounds, a winner is decided either by the referee's decision or by judges' scorecards.

Boxing has been around for many years dating back to the ancient Greek times where it was first seen as a formal sport and this was when a set of rules where designed and tournaments were staged. Boxing was first recognized as a sport round about 688 BC and really evolved in Europe.There are numerous different styles of boxing practiced around the world such as French boxing in France, or in Burma with Burmese boxing and in Thailand with Thai boxing.

For boxers to participate on tournaments and events they must wear boxing gloves with wrist wraps as the wrist wraps are used to secure the bones in the hand, and the gloves are used to protect the hands from injury, allowing boxers to throw punches with more force. Also boxers must wear a mouth guard to protect the teeth and gums from injury, and to cushion the jaw.

When in the ring boxers are prohibited from hitting below the belt, holding, tripping, pushing, biting, spitting or wrestling their opponent. They are also prohibited from kicking, head-butting, or hitting with any part of the arm other than the knuckles. If a boxer violates these rules then they may be ruled as fouls by the referee, who may issue warnings, deduct points, or disqualify an offending boxer which may cause an automatic loss depending on the seriousness of the foul committed.