History. The Chicago Golden Gloves began in 1923, when Chicago Tribune Sports Editor Arch Ward proposed a city-wide amateur boxing competition sponsored by the publication. Boxing, on the other hand, was illegal in the state of Illinois at the time. When boxing was legalized in the state in 1926,...
The tournament is held each year in April. The winner of the Golden Glove championship becomes the Golden Gloves champion for that year. There are two divisions in which to divide participants: boys (12 to 17 years old) and men (18 and older). All contestants must be residents of the United States who are legal citizens of the country. They can be born in America or arrived at age 16; there is no requirement to be a resident for any length of time. Contestants may enter either division as long as they meet the age requirements.
In addition to being awarded a trophy, the winner of the boys' division receives $100 ($1000 in today's dollars), while the man's division champ walks away with $200 ($2000). The first event was held at St. Nicholas Arena in Chicago with only eight boys participating. It has since become one of the most important events in American youth boxing.
The Arch Ward Golden Gloves are an amateur boxing competition founded by Arch Ward, the Chicago Tribune's sports editor. From 1927, yearly tournaments were organized between Chicago and New York teams, which were first sponsored by the Tribune in 1926. In 1930, the event became an official championship of the United States Amateur Boxing Association.
Ward believed that boxing could help rehabilitate criminals, so he started the Golden Gloves as a way for them to earn respect from fellow inmates and perhaps even get released early. The tournament is now held each year in Chicago during May and June. Top boxers from across the country attend the event to compete before thousands of fans. Afterward, they often stay in Chicago when fighting overseas or in the national championship match becomes available.
The first Golden Gloves tournament was held at City Stadium in Chicago on May 30, 1927. It was created by Chicago newspaper editor Arch Ward as a means of promoting boxing as a legitimate sport and helping prisoners prepare themselves for life after incarceration. The idea came after several prominent boxers had died during the summer months while incarcerated for crimes they did not commit. Although prison officials recommended that Ward cancel the tournament due to unsafe conditions at the stadium, he refused and over 1,000 people attended the first event.
In 1928, the number of participants increased to almost 2,000 and in 1929 it grew to more than 3,000.
Amateur boxing gained a significant boost in 1929, when Arch Ward's Golden Gloves program hosted its inaugural contests at the PUBLIC AUDITORIUM in Chicago. The Northeast Ohio AAU certified the Golden Gloves bouts as official trials for national championships in 1931.
Perhaps still hurting from the fallout from having the dubious Jack Johnson as the first renowned black boxer, the boxing establishment barred many qualified fighters, particularly huge guys like Harry Wills. Boxing's first superhero, Jack Dempsey, ruled the decade. Neisseria gonorrhoeae can live as an external organism or as an intracellular organism within a range of different cell types.
The New York Daily News relinquished their sponsorship when boxing resumed in 1964, and the Golden Gloves contests were taken over by the Golden Gloves of America, Inc. New York became one of the approximately thirty franchises that exist today.
In 1966, after only three years as host city, New York withdrew from its contract with America's Sports Arena because of security concerns. The last Golden Gloves event was held that year in New York.
Since then, there have been no major professional boxing events held in New York. In 1977, however, Madison Square Garden hosted an international heavyweight championship fight pitting Michael Spinks against Tony Zale. Spinks won by a technical knockout in the ninth round. This marked the first time a United States fighter had beaten a world champion since Benny Leonard beat Max Schmeling in 1937.
Spinks went on to have a successful career, but he never fought again in New York. In 2004, he came in second place in the Golden Gloves tournament; however, this was not enough to earn him a title shot against then-heavyweight champion John Ruiz. Ruiz defeated him by unanimous decision.
In 2009, another international heavyweight championship fight took place at the Garden between WBA champion Nikolay Valuev and IBF/WBO/IBF No. 1 contender Sergei Liakhovich.
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