Page 1252 - Week 05 - Tuesday, 11 May 1993
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I have been informed, especially by the Minister, that the sport is violent. However, we know that other sports are at times violent also and the Boxing Control Bill aims to regulate and control one of these, fist boxing, to limit its potential danger to contestants. We have rules in rugby league which attempt to limit dangerous practices such as headhigh tackles and spear tackling. In 1992 New South Wales boxing authorities attended six kick boxing competitions as official observers to take note of the injuries for boxing registration records. Unfortunately the material provided to me does not show how many events were on the card for each competition, but there were nine injuries, seven of which were head injuries, and the recommended treatment was a month's rest from boxing.
Debate interrupted.
ADJOURNMENT
MADAM SPEAKER: Order! It being 9.30 pm, I propose the question:
That the Assembly do now adjourn.
Mr Berry: I require the question to be put forthwith without debate.
Question resolved in the negative.
BOXING CONTROL BILL 1993
Detail Stage
Clause 3
Debate resumed.
MS SZUTY: Madam Speaker, on the rugby league field, concussions, as described in these injury reports, will see a player sent off, but if they regain consciousness before the final whistle they are often allowed back onto the playing field. For comparison, there were 24 fist boxing competitions that same year which resulted in 58 official injuries - 28 head injuries requiring a mandatory one-month rest from boxing, seven two-week lay-offs for eye lacerations, one two-month suspension for a ruptured eardrum and hand fracture, and four fighters were ordered to have full EEGs or neurological examinations before they could fight again. So which is the most violent sport? Kick boxing, which hosts few bouts a year, or fist boxing, which is practised often and appears to have a similar injury record? What would be the record if we did not control the sport of kick boxing? I would suggest that the rate of injury and the rate of boxers who fought too soon after injury would be much higher. I do not for one moment believe that the competitive side of the sport will cease; it will just become unofficial and unsupervised.
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