Ahmet Cömert (1926–1990) was a Turkish

amateur boxer An amateur () is generally considered a person who pursues an avocation independent from their source of income. Amateurs and their pursuits are also described as popular, informal, self-taught, user-generated, DIY, and hobbyist. History ...

, coach,

referee A referee is an official, in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection. The official tasked with this job may be known by a variety of other title ...

judge A judge is a person who wiktionary:preside, presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a judicial panel. In an adversarial system, the judge hears all the witnesses and any other Evidence (law), evidence presented by the barris ...

and sports official. He served in the executive committee of the

International Boxing Association The International Boxing Association (IBA), previously known as the Association Internationale de Boxe Amateur (AIBA), is a sports organization that sanctions amateur boxing, amateur and professional boxing matches and awards world and subordinate ...

(AIBA). He was born in

Kemaliye Kemaliye, formerly Eğin (, meaning "spring"), is a town in Erzincan Province in the Eastern Anatolia region of Turkey. It is the seat of Kemaliye District.Erzincan Province Erzincan Province (; ; ) is a Provinces of Turkey, province in the Eastern Anatolia Region of Turkey. In Turkey, its capital is also called Erzincan. Its area is 11,815 km2, and its population is 239,223 (2022). Geography Erzincan is trav ...

in 1926. Between 1939 and 1944, Ahmet Cömert performed amateur boxing. After retiring from active sport, he became a boxing coach at

Galatasaray S.K. Galatasaray Spor Kulübü (, ''Galatasaray Sports Club''), more commonly referred to as simply Galatasaray and familiarly as Cimbom, is a Turkish sports club based on the European side of the city of Istanbul including basketball, wheelchair ...

The boxing team he coached achieved four consecutive times champion titles. In the early 1950s, he participated at the

Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...

as a member of the

Turkish Brigade The Turkish Brigade, codenamed North Star ( or ''Kutup Yıldızı – Kore Savaşı'nın 50. Yıldönümü'' (''"North Star: the 50th Anniversary of the Korean War"'', TRT İzmir, Director: Ismail Ragıp Geçmen, 2000)), was a military formati ...

. Returned home, he successfully served as boxing referee in nine European and four World championships and two Olympic Games. He was awarded with a golden pin by the AIBA for his officiating 39 boxing fights with 100% accuracy during the

1972 Summer Olympics The 1972 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad () and officially branded as Munich 1972 (; ), were an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from 26 August to 11 September 1972. It was the ...

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

, an honor, which a boxing referee received for the first time ever. In 1978, Ahmet Cömert was appointed to the executive board and referee committee of the AIBA. He was elected vice president of the Amateur Boxing Federation of Islamic Countries. He served as boxing judge at the

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

and

Seoul Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital city, capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's List of cities b ...

Olympic Games. Ahmet Cömert died of apparent heart failure while on duty during the 1990 European Junior Boxing Championship held in the

Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...

Legacy

* An amateur boxing tournament () organized annually at international level in Turkey, which is considered as the biggest competition in the world, is named after him. In 2012, its 27th edition was held. * A sport hall () opened in 1998 in Ataköy neighborhood of

Bakırköy Bakırköy is a municipality and Districts of Turkey, district in the European part of Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its area is 29 km2, and its population is 226,685 (2022). Bakırköy lies between the State road D.100 (Turkey), D.100 highway (l ...

district in

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

bears his name.

References

1926 births 1990 deaths People from Kemaliye Boxing referees Boxing judges Turkish referees and umpires Turkish military personnel of the Korean War Turkish male boxers 20th-century Turkish sportsmen {{Turkey-boxing-bio-stub