After 112 years of amateur competition, the Olympics are welcoming professional boxers. Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys .All three of them.The International Boxing Associations high-profile plan to entice prominent pros to Rio de Janeiro didnt work, leaving the sport without the star-studded tournament many apparently wanted.Only a trio of traditional pros will compete for gold medals, and only hardcore boxing fans have ever heard of them: Cameroons Hassan NDam, Thailands Amnat Ruenroeng and Italys Carmine Tommasone.The Rio tournament will be more notable for what the men arent wearing. AIBA has removed headguards from male Olympic fighters for the first time since 1980.The biggest stars again could be the women, who are back for their second Olympics after providing the best moments in London.Here are some more things to know when the 286-person tournament begins Aug. 6:REIGNING CHAMPSAll three gold medal winners from the inaugural womens tournament in London are back to attempt to defend their titles. Britains Nicola Adams, Irelands Katie Taylor and American middleweight Claressa Shields all stuck with their sport, which has grown rapidly in prominence and quality over the past several years. In fact, only the dominant Shields is a strong favorite to repeat, given the improved competition at flyweight and lightweight.CAN YOU SEE MEAIBA announced its plan to remove Olympic headgear from the men three years ago, citing research claiming the bulky pads actually cause more concussions than they prevent. The quality of their science is considered dubious by many, but many fighters prefer to compete without the gear, and the sport is undeniably more telegenic when fans can see the fighters faces.UNKINDEST CUTThe biggest problem with the headgear removal is likely to be cuts, which will develop more frequently without the facial protection. Qualifying tournaments have been filled with fighters unable to continue to their next bout after getting cut, and Olympic stars seem likely to meet the same fate.BIG NAMESAIBA has tried for years to become a player in international professional boxing under President Wu Ching-Kuo, but it has succeeded only in nations without an established pro boxing culture. The Olympic-style sports growth in former Soviet republics will be obvious in Rio, where Kazakhstan (12 fighters), Azerbaijan (11), Uzbekistan (11) and Russia (11) will be well-represented along with the likes of Britain (12) and China (11). Cuba (10) has a fighter in every mens weight class, but still wont allow women to compete.EVEN THE SCOREAnother big change for Rio is the scoring system, which is no longer based on punch-counting. Fighters will be judged on the 10-point must system traditionally used in pro boxing, with the decision of each judge reduced to a single number. The final scores in the fights will be announced as 3-0 or 2-1. Unlike the headgear change, the move away from reviled punch-scoring has been greeted with broad approval. Still, it probably wont stop more than half of the losing fighters from claiming they were robbed, just as they do in every Olympic-style boxing tournament.YOUNG AMERICANSThe U.S. team is the historic leader in total Olympic boxing medals and golds, but the Americans are sending just eight fighters to Rio after four men and one woman failed to secure spots through qualifying tournaments. The team might be small, but Shields and lightweight Mikaela Mayer are both medal contenders. The U.S. men didnt win a single medal in London, but touted bantamweight Shakur Stevenson has a great shot to end that drought in Rio.THE GREATESTYoure not seeing things on the schedule: Thats Muhammad Ali competing in Rio. The 20-year-old British flyweight with the conspicuous name is among the medal favorites after training in the same gym as Athens silver medalist Amir Khan.HES BACKRussian ex-world champion Albert Selimov is best known for losing his first fight in Beijing to Ukraines Vasyl Lomachenko, the two-time gold medalist whose amateur legend truly began with that masterful performance. While Lomachenko reigns as a professional world champion eight years later, the 30-year-old Selimov is back at his second Olympics, fighting for Azerbaijan as a naturalized citizen. He is a medal favorite at lightweight.WATCH OUTCuba, another traditional world power, could return to prominence in Rio after winning just two gold medals in London -- a down Olympic cycle by its standards. Among its several strong medal contenders are London flyweight gold medalist Robeisy Ramirez, now fighting at bantamweight; three-time amateur light heavyweight world champion Julio Cesar La Cruz; and lightweight Lazaro Alvarez, a three-time world champion in two classes. Stitched Jerseys From China . -- Mike Smith never saw his first NHL goal go in. Wholesale Football Jerseys China . Once again Jordan Cieciwa (@FitCityJordan) and I (@LynchOnSports) go head to head in our picks. Last weekend at UFC Fight Night 32 my #TeamLynch got the best of #TeamJC by a score of 9-6. Let us know which side youre on for UFC 167 use the hashtag #TeamLynch or #TeamJC on Twitter. http://www.stitchedwholesalejerseys.com/ . According to a report from the Winnipeg Free Press, the Bombers will name Acting GM Kyle Walters to the post full time. Eddie Jones has given Steve Borthwick his blessing to join the British and Irish Lions coaching team in the summer and will travel to New Zealand under instructions to begin plotting Englands route to victory over the world champions.The Grand Slam champions extended their triumphant run to 12 Tests after routing Fiji 58-15 in the second of the autumns four internationals at Twickenham, amassing nine tries against the outgunned Islanders.Borthwick is reported to have been offered a position on Warren Gatlands coaching team for next summers Lions tour to New Zealand, reprising the forwards tracksuit role he currently performs for the Red Rose.Any such appointment would receive the blessing of Jones, who sees an opportunity to seize an early advantage ahead of Englands next schedduled meeting against New Zealand in 2018. Discount Football Jerseys. Im happy for all of my coaching team except me to be involved in the Lions tour, Jones said.If they are offered a job I will encourage them to take the job and get down there and work out how to beat New Zealand because that is one of our aims. They can help us and the Lions.What a great opportunity to spend six weeks in New Zealand on the Lions tour. Ten weeks of hearing bro seven million times and getting to understand everything about New Zealand rugby.Ultimately, if New Zealand are number one when we play them they will be the side to beat, but we are not sure they are going to be number one. cheap falcons jerseys cheap ravens jerseys cheap bills jerseys cheap bears jerseys cheap bengals jerseys cheap cowboys jerseys cheap lions jerseys cheap texans jerseys cheap colts jerseys cheap jaguars jerseys cheap chiefs jerseys cheap rams jerseys cheap dolphins jerseys cheap vikings jerseys cheap saints jerseys cheap giants jerseys cheap jets jerseys cheap eagles jerseys cheap steelers jerseys cheap 49ers jerseys ' ' '