I laugh at people using 'The Americans switched to football' excuse. Soviet republics ALWAYS had more success in boxing (and other combat sports like wrestling), at the olympics and world championships. It also just happened that Americans stopped dominating pro boxing (particularly heavyweight), around the time, when communism fell in Eastern Europe and all those boxers were allowed to turn pro.

That's not surprising since Russia and the Soviet Union and its former republics, not to mention amateur boxing powerhouse Cuba have been concentrating on the sport event and the Olympics in the absence of professional boxing in their countries until the 1990s.

On the other hand, the pool of amateur boxing talents in countries as the USA, Great Britain, Canada, Germany, France and Italy and Thailand, Japan, Korea and the Philippines has been stretched out due to the lure of lucrative professional boxing in their territories and internationally. Also, most of these countries are more interested in the Olympics than the Worlds, although the latter could also serve as a qualifier for the quadrennial games.

But success in amateurs does not necessarily translate to success in the professionals since many of the former Soviet bloc, Russian and Cuban amateur stars .did not achieve much when they turned to prize fighting.

Those numbers you mentioned do not count for much really if we consider the continuing domination of the USA and the West and Asia in international pro boxing.

Regards, tocayo!

That's because the best athletes in the USA play football and basketball where they can make more money.

Just imagine how good of a boxer a lightning quick basketball player like Russel Westbrook who's like 6'3 190 ,or physical specimens like football players Ray Lewis and Justin Francis who's like 6'4 270 pounds and quick.

Seth Mitchell is a former football player with no amateur background that switched to boxing because of knee problems and he's still a top 10 world ranked heavyweight.

Seth Mitchell looked good when he dominated one of the top fighters from Uzbekistan who had won a gold metal in the Asian olympic games ,check this clip out.