Philippine boxing has a heavyweight in its corner in the person of Ricky Vargas.

Currently the chairman of the Association of Boxing Alliances in the Philippines, Vargas won a seat in the four-member Executive Board of World Boxing after its Congress held Sunday in Rome.

World Boxing is the governing boxing body tasked by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to handle the boxing competitions in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

Vargas’ inclusion came following the appointment of Kazakh legend Gennady Golovkin as president of World Boxing during the same Congress in the Italian capital.

“It is a privilege to be elected as the new President of World Boxing. But this is just the beginning. Starting today, athletes will be at the heart of every decision we make. On the road to LA28, we will restore trust in Olympic boxing to secure our place in Brisbane and beyond. Now it’s time to move forward as one united boxing family,” said Golovkin, who succeeded Dutchman Boris van der Vorst.

The IOC suspended the International Boxing Association over ethical, financial and governance concerns in 2019 and granted World Boxing provisional recognition last February.

Vargas, 73, formerly the Philippine Olympic Committee president, joined Michael Muller of Germany, Tatsuya Nakama of Japan and Marcos Candido de Brito of Brazil in the board.

Elected as World Boxing vice-president were Ryan Shea of Canada, Matt Holt of Great Britain and Dinah Glykidis of Australia.

World Boxing has 136 member federations and the Philippines is one of its founding members.

Almost all of Europe has joined World Boxing while two-thirds of Asia is also aligned with the Lausanne-based body.

With Vargas occupying a lofty post, it could only mean one thing.

Philippine boxing suddenly finds itself carrying s big punch.