Many great boxing champions have risen through the amateur ranks. While an Olympic gold medal in any weight class does not guarantee a great pro career as a pugilist, it certainly is enough to get a fighter started out on the right track. Cassius Clay, Oscar De La Hoya, and George Foreman all got their starts at the Olympic boxing tourney. For some fighters, like Cuba’s Teofilo Stevenson, the Olympics are a pinnacle of a career.

Right now, boxing is one of the only all-male sports in the Games. That will change in 2012, when a woman’s tournament will take place alongside the men’s.

The 2008 Olympic tournament will be held in The Worker’s Indoor Arena in Beijing. The venue was built in 1991, but has undergone a major renovation over the past year. It now seats up to 13,000 people, making boxing one of the Games’ most attended events.

The scoring system, which was changed after a judging controversy, still has some kinks to be worked out. Currently, three or five judges must award a point at the same time (done by pushing a button). This method makes it difficult to score lots of points with a flurry of punches. Still, the better fighter is usually (although not always) awarded with the decision.

Cuba, Britain, and the U.S. are traditional powerhouses in this event. Thailand and Mexico have several strong entries in the lighter weight classes, and, as boxing fans know, anything can happen on any given day. There are a host of fighters in every weight class that are capable of ending a fight with one punch or, if not, than perhaps a combination will do the trick.

Several stars will be born during the tournament, and there will inevitably be some controversy. That is what makes boxing one of the most exciting events to watch during the Games.