The coronavirus pandemic has wreaked havoc with boxing and all other sports. One more possible postponement if the threat doesn’t subside soon: The International Boxing Hall of Fame Weekend.
The annual event, in which inductees join the pantheon of great boxers and contributors, has become an institution in June in Canastota, New York.
However, the Hall will be closed through the end of the month and possibly beyond. Executive Direction Ed Brophy told the New York Post that he hopes the event will still take place June 11-14.
“Hall of Fame weekend is still on for mid-June,” Brophy told The Post. “But we’ll continue to follow the rules and regulations of the county and the state and monitor all the different guidelines and watch what happens day-by-day and week-by-week as we go through March.”
The Class of 2020 is a high-powered one, as Bernard Hopkins, Juan Manuel Marquez and Shane Mosley are the marquee names that will enter the Hall. And, for the first time, women will be inducted. The first three honorees are Christy Martin, Lucia Rijker and Barbara Buttrick.
“It’s an historic class with the first females to be enshrined and have their plaques in the museum,” Brophy said. “Ticket sales for the weekend had been good since the fall when we made the announcement of the inductees. We’re still right on target for have a special weekend. We’re going to continue to monitor the next week and a half and the beginning of April and determine what is happening.
“Everything is day-to-day. It’s hard to forecast out to June. But the best position we can be in is to maintain our plans that are well underway and keep moving forward.”