Amir Khan Backs Push for Sweeping Boxing Safety Inquiry

Former world champion Amir Khan has joined a growing group of fighters backing an independent inquiry into how combat sports protect the people who compete in them. The review will be led by a King's Counsel, a senior barrister, and aims to raise welfare, health and safety standards across boxing and other combat sports.

Khan's support carries weight because of his profile and his own long career at the top of the sport. His backing suggests the push is not confined to campaign groups or lower-profile athletes. Other boxers have also lined up behind the idea, which points to momentum among the people who carry the most physical risk in the ring.

The central problem is consistency. Rules on medical checks, head injury protocols and oversight of bouts can differ between regions, promoters and governing bodies, so a fighter's protections may depend heavily on where they happen to compete. A inquiry with legal standing and a clear remit could map those gaps and propose a common baseline. Any recommendations would still need buy-in from regulators and sanctioning bodies before they changed anything on the ground.

Much will depend on the details that are still to come, including the inquiry's timetable, its terms of reference and who sits on it. If it is seen as independent and gives fighters a real voice, it could become one of the more significant reviews the sport has faced in recent years.