Heavyweight boxing legend Mike Tyson called plans to admit professional boxers to the Rio Olympics "ridiculous" and "foolish" on Wednesday (25th May) as he attended the International Boxing Federation World Convention in Beijing.

"It's ridiculous, it's foolish and some of the pro fighters are going to get beat by the amateurs. It's just going to happen. Some of them are going to get beat, I think. I really believe that. If the fighters are like the amateur fighters that I was fighting in the 1980s, like (Teofilo) Stevenson and those guys and all those guys that were fighting, the Russians and the Cubans, they are going to beat some of the champions. This is going to happen. For three rounds, four rounds, some of the professional boxers are not going to be able to catch these guys. These guys are going to be fast for three or four rounds. These guys are not going to be accustomed to that."

Former world heavyweight champion Mike Tyson was speaking at the Forum of Boxing Culture and Sports Industry, giving his suggestions on how to build the professional sport in China.

Tyson said strong government involvement would help to build a fresh and healthy sport of professional boxing.

He also called on the Chinese government to take care of the sport and the interests of the fighters - more specifically saying that managers and agents can be replaced by a government that cares for its boxers.