The Japan Boxing Federation said on Feb. 27 it will accept an earlier decision of the International Olympic Committee’s special task force for boxing to cancel the final qualifying round for this year’s Tokyo Olympics, which was suspended in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, thereby virtually precluding Olympic participation of five up-and-coming men’s and female boxers.

The IOC Boxing Task Force indicated on Feb. 16 that 53 men’s and female boxers, who were originally expected to be selected at the final qualifying round in Paris in June, now will be assigned based on its own rankings, including the results of various international competitions since 2017.

While the JBF submitted a petition to the task force the following day and sought the staging of the qualifying round as it was of the view that the rapidly advancing boxers, who failed to meet performance targets in the past, will be deprived of their chances to enter the Olympics.

But given the current state of the COVID-19 pandemic in the world, the JBF has retracted its petition. The task force has been of the view that it will select the 53 boxers based on its own rankings, including the results of various international competitions since 2017.

Featherweight Hayato Tsutsumi of Toyo University, light heavyweight Ren Umemura of Iwate Sports Association were men’s boxers the JBF had in mind, while lightweight Saya Hamamoto of Nippon Sport Science University, welterweight Mai Kito of the graduate school of Chukyo University and Arisa Tsubata of Nishisaitama Chuo National Hospital were female boxers the JBF targeted.

At present, men’s welterweight Sewon Okazawa and a pair of female boxers, flyweight Tsukimi Namiki of Japan Self-Defense Forces and featherweight Sena Irie of Nippon Sport Science University, who all won in the Asian and Oceanian championships, are qualified for the Olympics.

In addition to them, flyweight Ryomei Tanaka of Chukyo High School teacher, lightweight Daisuke Narimatsu of JSDF and middleweight Yuito Moriwaki of JSDF, all men, have already been qualified for the Olympics as a host nation’s privilege.