Light-Welterweight (≤63.5 kilograms), Men

The defending champion in this class was Poland’s Jerzy Kulej and he was back and considered the favorite, although the American, Jim Wallington, was highly considered. From 1966-68, Wallington won three AAU titles, three Inter-Service championships, three Golden Gloves titles, and the 1967 Pan American Games gold medal. In addition to his Tokyo gold medal, Kulej had won the 1963 and 1965 European title as a light-welter, and was a silver medalist in 1967, where he lost to the Soviet Yevgeny Frolov, who he had defeated in the Tokyo final. Frolov was in Mexico, but lost a quarter-final bout to Cuba’s Enrique Regüeiferos, who advanced to the final against Kulej by defeating Wallington by majority decision. The final was very close with Kulej being given the 3-2 decision over the hard-hitting Cuban. Regüeiferos would return to fight in the 1972 Olympics, but lost early. Kulej was a Polish hero and retired from boxing after the 1968 Olympics. He became an actor in Polish movies, and in 2001 turned to politics, being elected a member of the Polish Parliament as a Social Democrat.