(COLORADO SPRINGS,
COLO) – Dr. Charles Butler (Kalamazoo, Mich.), a long-term
ringside physician and AIBA committee member, has been elected
to serve as the President/Chair of USA Boxing. Butler was chosen
by his fellow USA Boxing Board of Directors members to fill the
role following the removal of Hal Adonis as President.
“It is a great honor to be elected President of USA Boxing 16
days before our team leaves for London. The time is critical for
USA Boxing. We have a great and proud tradition. Now we must
support that tradition with achievement,” Butler said. “We will
provide for all needs of our athletes and coaches in this short
preparation period. Once the Olympic Games are over, we will
work to increase the number of both men and women boxers in our
country and work to restore boxing to its rightful and historic
place among all sports in the United States.”
In his first days as President of the organization, Butler
implemented a financial incentive program for the 2012 Olympic
Team, encouraging the team members to train and perform at their
highest levels. The athletes will be rewarded for their efforts
both in training camp as well as medal performances in London
per Butler’s new program. Following the Olympic Games, he will
turn his attention to updating USA Boxing’s rulebook and bylaws
to ensure they are consistent.
Butler has served on the medical committee from 2003 to the
present date, holding numerous positions on the board. He
currently holds positions within numerous Ringside Physicians
organizations both in the United States and abroad. Highly
respected throughout the globe, Butler has been heavily involved
at the international level over the past decade. He is a member
of the AIBA Executive Committee, AIBA Reform Committee and AIBA
Executive Bureau as well as serving as the Chair of AIBA’s
Medical Commission and is the AIBA Medical Representative to the
IOC. Butler was elected to USA Boxing’s Board of Directors in
2010 in the role of AIBA Director prior to being elected
President on Monday.
Dr Butler is a highly respected Cardiac Surgeon who has held
teaching positions at Harvard University, the Mayo Clinic, the
University of Alabama, University of Utah, LSU, and Michigan
State. He was the Director of Cardiac Surgery at Michigan State
University’s Bronson Methodist Hospital from 1985-2005. Butler
is a father of three, and he and his wife, Penny, live in
Kalamazoo, Mich.
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