Media Guidelines & Protocols Boxing Road to Tokyo Olympic Qualifying Event Copper Box Arena, Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, London 14-24 March 2020
www.boxingroadtotokyolondon.org
Contents
Page
Welcome 3
Boxing Road to Tokyo in London 4
Introduction 5
Accreditation 5
Media Centre 5
Media protocols & ways of working 7 1. General principles 7 2. Broadcast operations 7 3. Photography operations 7 4. Mixed zone 8 5. Media tribune 8 6. Press conferences 9 7. News Service 9
Media contacts 10
General information 11
Welcome
On behalf of GB Boxing and all of our partners, I am delighted to cordially welcome all members of the media to the Boxing Road to Tokyo Olympic Qualifying event in London. It is a pleasure and a privilege to welcome you.
This event will be the biggest Olympic boxing event to take place in the UK since London 2012, which was a huge success for the sport and a proud moment for our boxers who collected five medals.
With this in mind, we are thrilled to be competing back in London and hope the public will emulate the support they showed the boxers in 2012 and make it a memorable occasion for all of the 340 plus boxers from 46 countries that will be competing for 77 places at Tokyo 2020.
Boxing Road to Tokyo in London would not have been possible without a number of partners and I would like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude to the National Lottery, the Mayor of London, UK Sport and the British Olympic Association, without whose support and assistance this event would not have been able to take place.
I would also like to thank the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park and the Copper Box Arena for hosting this event and welcoming all of the athletes, coaches and support staff from all of the participating countries to London.
Lastly, I would like to extend a warm welcome to yourselves in the media and all of the spectators that will be attending this event to support the boxers and enjoy what I am sure will be a superb 11 days of action as the boxers compete to fulfil their dream of competing at the Olympic Games.
Kindest regards
Matthew Holt Chief Executive GB Boxing
Boxing Road to Tokyo in London
More than 340 boxers from over 40 countries will take part in the Boxing Road to Tokyo European qualifying event at the Copper Box Arena in London from 14-24 March 2020.
77 qualification places for Tokyo 2020 are on offer at the event which will take place across eight men’s weight categories and five for women. 50 qualification places are available for the men and 27 for women.
The tournament will take place over 11 days through several rounds of competition, covering preliminaries, quarter-finals, semi-finals and finals. In weight classes where five or six places are available, there will be Box-Offs to determine some of the places.
Although boxers will secure qualification for Tokyo at different stages in the tournament (depending on how many places are available at their weight class), the competition will continue through to medal stages and a final in all 13 weight classes as performance at the Boxing Road to Tokyo qualifying events will impact on the seeding of boxers at Tokyo 2020.
In men’s 52kg, 57kg and 63kg weight classes, eight qualification places are available and boxers will be able to secure their place at Tokyo in their preliminary (Round of 16) contests.
In weight classes where there are six qualification places available (women’s 51kg, 57kg, 60kg and men’s 69kg, 75kg and 81kg) any boxer that wins their quarter-final will secure a place at Tokyo 2020. The four losing quarter-finalists will then compete again in two Box-Offs, where the winners of those bouts will secure qualification for Tokyo 2020.
In the women’s 69kg weight class, where there are five qualification places available, any boxer that wins their quarter-final will secure Olympic qualification. The losing quarter-finalists will compete again in two Box-Offs with the winners of those contests then entering a second Box- Off where the victor will secure the fifth and final qualification slot for Tokyo 2020.
In weight classes, where there are four qualification places available (women’s 75kg and men’s 91kg and 91+kg) only the winners of the quarter-finals will secure a place at Tokyo 2020.
The competition schedule can be viewed at https://www.boxingroadtotokyolondon.org/tickets.
The competition draw will take place on Friday 13 March 2020. Drawsheets will be posted on the competition website www.boxingroadtotokyolondon.gov.
To ensure boxers compete all the way through the competition, performance at the Road to Tokyo Qualifying events is linked to seeding at Tokyo 2020 with boxers being allocated points towards their seeding, depending on where the finish at the qualifying events.
Introduction
This media guide has been prepared to support and assist all journalists, photographers and broadcasters that are attending the Boxing Road to Tokyo Olympic Qualifying event in London.
The guide aims to facilitate a smooth working relationship between media attending the event and the media team of the Local Organising Committee.
It provides details on the accreditation, facilities and support available via the event Media Centre and details protocols and ways of working covering: broadcast operations; photo operations; mixed zones, the media tribune, press conferences and the event news service.
Accreditation
All media accreditations can be collected from the Media Centre which will open at 12:00 on Friday 13 March 2020.
Details of the opening times for the Media Centre, when journalists, broadcasters and photographers can collect their accreditations are detailed in the section below. Proof of identification will need to be provided for an accreditation to be handed over.
Photographers will be allocated bibs to allow them access to designated photography positions. Specific coloured bibs will be allocated for ringside positions which will need to signed-out and returned at the end of each session and are not transferable.
Media Centre
The Media Centre has its own entrance which is approximately 30 metres along from the main entrance to the Copper Box Arena. Opening times for the Media Centre are:
Date Opening time Closing time Friday 13 March 12:00 19:00 Saturday 14 March 10:00 22:30 Sunday 15 March 10:00 22:30 Monday 16 March 10:00 22:30 Tuesday 17 March 10:00 22:30 Wednesday 18 March 10:00 18:00 Thursday 19 March 10:00 22:30 Friday 20 March 10:00 22:30 Saturday 21 March 10:00 22:30 Sunday 22 March 10:00 22:30 Monday 23 March 14:00 22:30 Tuesday 24 March 14:00 22:30
The Media Centre will be staffed at all times and is open to all accredited journalists, photographers and broadcaster. It has multiple power points, free WiFi and desk space for up to 30 people to work at any one time.
Drawsheets for the competition will be displayed in the Media Room and available online. Results will be available online at the end of each session at the event website www.boxingroadtotokyolondon.org.
A small number of lockers are available for photographers that would like to store equipment and will be allocated on a first-come-first served basis. Tea, coffee and water will be available.
Media Protocols & ways of working
1. General principles
The media team at Boxing Road to Tokyo will endeavour to do the best possible job to enable journalists, photographers and broadcasters to cover and showcase the event and aims to work in a spirit of co-operation with all of the media that will be attending.
In doing this there is an expectation that the media recognises that there are necessary limits to the access they can be granted and respect the protocols and ways of working set out here.
As with many major sporting events, many members of the media team are volunteers who are playing an essential role in the successful delivery of the event. They are one of our greatest assets and it is important that they are treated with respect at all times so we ask all media to remember that they are here to make your lives easier and to assist in enabling the event to run as smoothly and efficient for everyone.
2. Broadcast operations
The Olympic Channel is the host broadcaster for the event and there are also local rights holders to the competition. These are the only broadcasters that will be allowed access to the field of play will be allocated bibs so that they can be easily identified.
All other broadcasters will be considered as non-rights holders. They will not be permitted to film action in the ring, but will have access to the mixed zone where they can film interviews with the boxers. They will also have access to press conferences and interviews in the press conference room.
3. Photo operations
There will be a number of photo positions in the arena.
A maximum of six ringside positions will be available for each session and these will be allocated at the start of the session. Photographers with access to ringside will be allocated a numbered bib which will be signed for. The bibs are not transferable and should be signed back in once the photographer leaves the field of play. Photographers are allowed to leave the field of play during a session but only at the end of a bout.
There will be other designated photography areas in the arena which will enable photographers to capture a range of perspectives on the event. Each of these will be managed by a member of the media team.
There will be two official event photographers whose role will be denoted by a bib for ease of recognition.
For medal ceremonies photographers will be directed to the photography position on the field of play by the photo managers.
We recognise that working in close proximity at major sporting events can be challenging for photographers and request all photographers to be respectful of their colleagues. To facilitate this, the LOC’s media team has developed a code of conduct which all photographers will be expected to sign and agree to before being presented with their accreditation.
4. Mixed Zone
Mixed zones are an essential part of major sporting event and an opportunity for media to get instance reaction from the athletes.
Given the heightened emotions that boxers can experience post-bout, the media are expected to exercise courtesy towards the athletes whilst while the athletes are expected to respect that the media have an important role to play in publicising their exploits and their sport.
At Boxing Road to Tokyo, all competitors are expected to pass through the mixed zone when leaving the field of play. They are encouraged to participate in interviews, however they are not obliged to answer questions or participate in interviews if they do not wish to do so.
Boxers will be escorted into the mixed zone by a member of the media team and team Press Attaches for the boxers are permitted to walk with the athlete after they leave the broadcast mixed zone.
At the end of the competition, boxers will be expected to pass though the mixed zone twice. The first will be immediately post-bout; the second time will be following their medal ceremony.
The mixed zone will be managed by a member of the media team and divided into sections. The order in which the boxers will pass through the mixed zone will be: Rights-holding broadcasters, including the Olympic Channel which will be given the first position. Secondary rights-holding broadcasters, which in the case of Boxing Road to Tokyo in London will be the BBC National Press and news agencies Games news service Non-rights holding broadcasters
5. Media Tribune
In the arena a number of seats have been allocated and reserved specifically for media. Given the specific nature of the Copper Box Arena, there are two areas of seating where the media can watch the action. These include: A line of seats in the lower (with power but no desk facility) Desks and seats on the first floor concourse between the lower and upper seating bowl
Both of these offer excellent views of the action and the seats in the lower bowl offer quicker and simpler access to the mixed zone.
Journalists and media are not able to reserve seats and spaces which can be taken on a first come first saved basis. In the two ring set-up (14-18 March 2020), journalists are free to move around the tribune to get closer views of the action in the different rings.
A member of the media team will be present in the media tribune during competition.
6. Press conferences
A press conference and interview space is available in the venue which teams are able to use for specific media opportunities. The room is large enough for press conferences with up to 20 media and journalists, though it does not have a raised platform.
The room must be booked in advance and this can be done by speaking to the staff on the helpdesk in the Media Centre. It is expected that this room will be primarily used by national teams for media interviews with their home nation media and can be booked by team Press Attaches.
If the LOC chooses to hold a press conference all accredited media will be informed of this and invited to attend.
7. News service
The LOC will be operating a news service throughout the duration of Boxing Road to Tokyo in London. The news service will be made-up of student journalists from English universities along with members of a journalism project to increase representation in the media amongst BAME groups.
The news service will have access to the Media Centre, mixed zones and the media tribune. It will provide flash quotes, daily news updates and social media posts to raise awareness of the event and the achievements of the boxers.
The news stories will be posted on the news section of the event website at https://www.boxingroadtotokyolondon.org/blog.
Social media posts will utilise GB Boxing’s existing channels on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Media Contacts
The members of the media team in the Media Centre are one of the primary resources to support journalists, photographers and broadcasters on day-to-day media operations at Boxing Road to Tokyo in London.
In addition to this, media are also able to email any general questions or requests to [email protected].
Media contacts that can advise on specific issues and requests are:
Lee Murgatroyd Head of Communications, Media and Marketing, Boxing Road to Tokyo [email protected] 07974 161 166
Chiara Ferrante Boxing Task Force (BTF) Communications [email protected] +41 (0) 79 721 73 55
Marco Dalla Dea Boxing task Force (BTF) Communications Lead [email protected]
General Information
Location
The Copper Box Arena Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park London E20 3HB
Transport to the Copper Box Arena
Car: There is no car parking facilities available for media at the Copper Box Arena.
The closest car park can be found at Stratford Westfield Car Park (0.5 miles) which is an 11-minute walk to the event. This car park is made up of three separate parks with around 4,500 spaces available. All are open 24/7 for exit purposes, however only Car Parks A & B are open 24/7 for entry. The cost of parking on this site can be found on the Westfield website, along with any other information you may require.
Underground/Overground: Stratford Station (Jubilee, Central, Overground and DLR) is the largest nearby station and a 20 minute walk from the venue.
Hackney Wick (Overground) is the closest rail station to the Copper Box Arena (0.4 miles) and is an estimated 10 minute walk.
Stratford International (DLR) is also in close proximity (0.5 miles) and will take around 12 minutes to reach the arena from the station. Kings Cross and St Pancras are just 7 minutes from Stratford International by train.
Bus: The 388 bus service will drop you off on Waterden Road (0.1 miles) which is a four-minute walk from the arena. The service runs between Stratford City Bus station and London Bridge Bus Station and stops include Cambridge Heath Station, Shoreditch High Street Station and Liverpool Street Station. Further details regarding this service can be found here.
All of these forms of transport are operated by TfL and therefore contactless and Oyster card payment is accepted. Visit Transport for London to plan your journey via TfL's transport network.
Food & drink
No food or drink is permitted to be brought into the Copper Box Arena. Food and drink can be purchased in the venue and there are numerous restaurants and cafes at the nearby Westfield Stratford shopping centre.
Tea, coffee and water will be available in the Media Centre.
Security
There will be security checks on all bags coming into the Media Centre. Prohibited items include: Any illegal items Fireworks Smoke canisters Bottles/Glasses/Cans Flags/Banners/Poles
No unauthorised persons are permitted to enter field of play.
Foul, abusive or racial language or any forms of anti-social behaviour is not permitted and may lead to prosecution.
Animals will not be permitted unless advance written permission has been given. There is an exception for police, security and guide dogs.