The fighters are brave and skilful - but is there really still a place for boxing in the modern world of sport? (page 2 of 2)

The money men call the tune

There are huge purses in boxing - Mayweather received around $10m, and De La Hoya $25m, for last Saturday's fight. With money at this level is it surprising that the sport survives, despite all the medical evidence against it? And is it surprising that it is the sport with historically more corruption and criminality in it than any other? The history of professional boxing is littered with the debris of fixed fights, dysfunctional and greedy promoters and crime syndicates.

Violence breeds violence

The violence of a boxing match is in many ways a metaphor for conflict resolution in society as a whole. It is part and parcel of the same thing which led a leading candidate for the Republican nomination to the US Presidency, John McCain, to "sing" "Bomb bomb bomb, bomb bomb Iran," to the tune of the Beach Boys "Barbara Ann" when asked what he would do about Iran. It is part of the same world of violence that led to the deaths' of 33 people at Virginia Tech and yet has a "National Rifle Association" which says "Private citizens benefit from handguns..."

But sport doesn't have to be part of this world at all. Sport should set an example to society not reflect back its darker images. The charter of the Olympic Games says that "The goal of Olympism is to place sport at the service of the harmonious development of man, with a view to promoting a peaceful society concerned with the preservation of human dignity." Boxing fails this test.