The IOC Executive Board supported the proposal to add a package of five new sports to the programme for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, the IOC announced today.
If approved at the 129th IOC session in Rio de Janeiro in August, it would be most comprehensive evolution of the Olympic programme in modern history.
The five sports looking to be added are: karate, skateboarding, sports climbing, surfing, and baseball/softball. These sports offer a key focus on youth, which is the heart of the vision for the 2020 Games in Tokyo. They also offer a combination of well-established and emerging sports with large popularity in Japan and beyond. They include both team sports and individual sports; indoor sports and outdoor sports; and ‘urban’ sports with a strong appeal to youth.
The package of five sports will now be submitted to the IOC session. These sports fit under the athlete and event quota recommendations for Olympic sports outlined in the Olympic Agenda 2020, and won’t take away any places from athletes competing in existing Olympic sports. Discussions on the the existing sports for Tokyo are ongoing and will be finalized by the IOC executive board mid-2017.
The new sports were proposed by the Organizing Committee for the Tokyo Olympics in response to the new flexibility provided by the Olympic Agenda 2020 and the IOC’s strategic roadmap for the future of the Olympic movement, which encourages innovation in the Olympic programme. The Agenda 2020 now gives host cities the opportunity to suggest new sports and events for their edition of the Games. However, the host cities selections are not binding on future hosts.
The new sports would add 18 events and 474 athletes to the Olympic programme in Tokyo, but would not impact existing sports. The five sports promote gender equality with an equal number of male and female teams in all sports, and it also focuses on innovative and exciting sports for the people of Japan and a wider international audience.
It would be pathetic. Once again. But on the other hand it would be very good for French medal table.
Please .. take equestrian dressage out of the program
Dear god not baseball