Light-Middleweight (≤71 kilograms), Men

Before the events of the final there had already been some controversy concerning the progress of South Korea’s Park Si-Heon into the final. Park had already been lucky to avoid disqualification in his opening bout against Abdullah Ramadan of Sudan before he began a run of three close and controversial points decisions. In particular his quarter-final victory against Italy’s Vincenzo Nardiello drew criticism as most impartial observers believed the Italian was a deserving winner.

In contrast Roy Jones, Jr. had strolled past his opposition with a knockout and three decisive points decisions. His showboating style may have given offence for its’ supposed lack of respect for his opponents but none could deny his talent.

For the three rounds of the final, Jones appeared in complete control and most observers viewed the fight as a complete shutout for the American. The computer punch count recorded that Jones had landed nearly three times as many punches as Park (86-32). When the result was announced it was revealed that the Soviet and Hungarian judges had awarded the fight to Jones by four point margins but the other three had voted for the Korean. The decision was widely condemned as one of the worst in Olympic history and directly led to the introduction of electronic punch counters at the 1992 Olympic Games.

In 1997 the International Amateur Boxing Federation presented the IOC with information concerning allegations that some of the judges had received bribes at the 1988 Olympics. The IOC concluded that the charges were not proven. Unusually for a non-Olympic champion, Jones was awarded the Val Barker Trophy for best boxer of the Games.

Jones used the publicity gained in Seoul to start a lucrative career in the professional and emerged as one of the greatest boxers of the end of the 20th century. He won world titles at four different weights and became the first man for more than a century to win the world championship at middleweight, light-heavyweight and heavyweight.