TEENAGERS could study amateur boxing as part of their A-levels for the first time after an appeal by a North-East college.

The OCR exam board said yesterday that amateur boxing was to be added in principle to the list of sports that can be studied for AS and A-level PE coursework.

Students could begin studying the sport as soon as next summer.

An OCR spokesman said the decision came after East Durham and Houghall community college, in County Durham, lodged a formal appeal against the ban on boxing as part of coursework.

He said the board decided to reverse the policy because it had not sufficiently taken into account the difference between amateur and professional boxing.

He said: "In coming to this decision, the panel recognised in particular the distinction drawn between amateur boxing and professional boxing.

"It was felt that insufficient weight might have been given to this distinction previously."

In July, 16-year-old Adam Mytton, from Redditch, Worcestershire, threatened to take the OCR to court because it would not allow him to study boxing.

He reportedly said the board's decision refusal limited his ability to fulfil his potential in higher education and was in breach of his human rights.

The board said it had taken into account correspondence it had received from him when reviewing the decision.

The OCR said the change in policy was unlikely to result in a large increase in schools offering boxing lessons.