

The Mahabharata describes two combatants boxing with clenched fists and fighting with kicks, finger strikes, knee strikes and headbutts during the time of King Virata. The earliest references to musti-yuddha come from classical Vedic epics such as the Rig Veda ( c. Various types of boxing existed in ancient India. The earliest evidence of use of gloves can be found in Minoan Crete ( c. These early Middle-Eastern and Egyptian depictions showed contests where fighters were either bare-fisted or had a band supporting the wrist. 1350 BC) shows both boxers and spectators. A relief sculpture from Egyptian Thebes ( c. The earliest visual evidence of boxing comes from Egypt and Sumer both from the third millennium BC. The origin of the sport of boxing is unknown, however according to some sources boxing has prehistoric origins in present-day Ethiopia where it appeared in the sixth millennium BC and when the Egyptians invaded Nubia they learned the art of boxing from the local population and they took the sport to Egypt where it became popular and from Egypt boxing spread to other countries including Greece, and eastward to Mesopotamia and northward to Rome

However, in terms of sports competition, due to the lack of writing in the prehistoric times and the lack of references, it is not possible to determine rules of any kind of boxing in prehistory, and in ancient times only can be inferred from the few intact sources and references to the sport. Hitting with different extremities of the body, such as kicks and punches, as an act of human aggression, has existed across the world throughout human history, being a combat system as old as wrestling. In Olympic boxing, because a winner must be declared, judges award the contest to one fighter on technical criteria.Ī boxing scene depicted on a Panathenaic amphora from Ancient Greece, circa 336 BC, British Museum
#BILLIARDS GLOVE PROFESSIONAL#
In case both fighters gain equal scores from the judges, a professional bout is considered a draw. When the fight reaches the end of its final round with both opponents still standing, the judges' scorecards determine the victor.
#BILLIARDS GLOVE SERIES#
Boxing is overseen by a referee over a series of one-to-three-minute intervals called "rounds".Ī winner can be resolved before the completion of the rounds when a referee deems an opponent incapable of continuing, disqualifies an opponent, or the opponent resigns. Boxing evolved from 16th- and 18th-century prizefights, largely in Great Britain, to the forerunner of modern boxing in the mid-19th century with the 1867 introduction of the Marquess of Queensberry Rules.Īmateur boxing is both an Olympic and Commonwealth Games sport and is a standard fixture in most international games - it also has its own world championships. The earliest evidence of boxing rules date back to Ancient Greece, where boxing was established as an Olympic game in 688 BC. The earliest visual evidence of any type of boxing is from Egypt and Sumer both from the third millennia and can be seen in Sumerian carvings from the third and second millennia BC. Though humans have fought in hand-to-hand combat since the dawn of human history and the origin of the sport of boxing is unknown, according to some sources boxing has prehistoric origins in present-day Ethiopia where it appeared in the sixth millennium BC and when the Egyptians invaded Nubia they learned the art of boxing from the local population and they took the sport to Egypt where it became popular and from Egypt boxing spread to other countries including Greece, and eastward to Mesopotamia and northward to Rome. Boxing techniques have been incorporated into many martial arts, military systems, and other combat sports. Some of the forms of the modern sport are western boxing, bare knuckle boxing, kickboxing, muay-thai, lethwei, savate, and sanda. In global terms, boxing is a set of combat sports focused on striking, in which two opponents face each other in a fight using at least their fists, and possibly involving other actions such as kicks, elbow strikes, knee strikes, and headbutts, depending on the rules. The sport itself: Ancient history, possibly Prehistoricīoxing (also known as "Western boxing" or "pugilism") is a combat sport in which two people, usually wearing protective gloves and other protective equipment such as hand wraps and mouthguards, throw punches at each other for a predetermined amount of time in a boxing ring.Īlthough the term "boxing" is commonly attributed to "western boxing", in which only the fists are involved, boxing has developed in various ways in different geographical areas and cultures.

The modern sport was codified in England in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Two Royal Navy men boxing for charity (1945).
