Beijing 2020 (actually 2021): climbing, surfing, skate, karate. Paris 2024: breaking (plus confirmation of climbing, surfing and skate). Los Angeles 2028: 9 disciplines running in the short lists (cricket, kickboxing, breaking, baseball and softball, lacrosse, karate, squash and motorsport). The IOC opens the doors to new sports, hurban sports, repechage and confirmations. More and more TVs are in command.
28 sports are confirmed for LA 28 (including climbing, surfing and skateboarding) and the IOC should accept further recommendations from the organizing committee on this new list. In any case, the fixed limit of 10,500 athletes must not be exceeded. Boxing, weightlifting and modern pentathlon are under scrutiny for various reasons (doping and corruption), but they have a good chance of being confirmed at the US-made Games as well.
The nine sports candidates to enter the 2028 Games will be examined in the coming months before the IOC Executive Committee proposes a list at the IOC session, which also includes Giovanni Malagò: the final choice will be held in Mumbai, India, in May 2023.
Cricket’s only appearance at the Olympic Games was in Paris in 1900. The T20 format was proposed for the 2028 Games. Breaking, more commonly known as breakdance, will instead make its Olympic debut at Paris 2024. The sport appeared for the first time as an Olympic discipline at the Buenos Aires 2018 Youth Olympic Games and had a great success among young people.
The unique venue requirement for baseball and softball led to their exclusion from the London 2012 and Rio 2016 Olympic Games, but there has been a repechage in Japan and now it could be confirmed at LA 28 Games as well. Dodger Stadium). A partnership between the International Federation of American Football (Ifaf) and the National Football League (Nfl) of the United States is behind the offer to include flag football at LA 28. The flag is seen as a key component to the international growth of the United States. ‘IFAF and was first presented at a multisport event at the Birmingham 2022 World Games. The rules are based on American football but without physical contact. A kind of capture the flag.
Lacrosse, on the other hand, is a sport practiced by indigenous peoples throughout North America, and has become one of the most popular disciplines in US high schools. It first appeared in St Louis in 1904 and again in London in 1908: it was later a demonstration sport in Amsterdam in 1928, Los Angeles in 1932 and London in 1948.
Appearing at the Tokyo 2020 Games for the first and only time, karate is a popular sport among young Americans. In Paris 2024 it was not confirmed, surprisingly. Kickboxing is making its first “offer” for inclusion in the program and has never appeared at the Games. Squash has instead tried several times to enter the Olympics without ever succeeding. Motorsport was previously banned from the Games, but that rule was dropped 10 years ago and electric karting has become a demonstration event in Buenos Aires 2018. Now it is attempted with electric or hydrogen engines. This is the situation for Los Angeles 2028: other sports such as padel (see Spy Calcio of 15 August) or bowls will have to try their luck for Brisbane 2032. The decision will be made in three years.
