From Chess to American Football, Tokyo 2020 Receives 26 Applications For Olympic Program Inclusion

[GBModerator 184]

An astonishing 26 of the 35 recognized Olympic sports have seized the opportunity afforded by the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) Agenda 2020 and applied for the chance to be included in the Tokyo 2020 program.  On Monday, the IOC Executuve Board approved Tokyo’s plans to add one or more sports to its schedule according to a […]

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[Ikarus360 599]

Not sure about chess. And American Football? Don't we have Rugby already which is a very similar sport? I really don't see it passing the test. Specially when besides USA, most other countries are oblivious to American Football or practice Rugby instead (and last time they tried to introduce the sport in Europe making a league, it didn't ended well at all: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NFL_Europe )

[Fox334 93]

Not sure about chess. And American Football? Don't we have Rugby already which is a very similar sport? I really don't see it passing the test. Specially when besides USA, most other countries are oblivious to American Football or practice Rugby instead (and last time they tried to introduce the sport in Europe making a league, it didn't ended well at all: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NFL_Europe )

That's just the sports that placed a bid. Lets be honest, none of the IFs affiliated with the IOC have any incentive to *not* place a bid. In reality there's only a couple of the 26 that have any chance.

[LatinXTC 270]

Not sure about chess. And American Football? Don't we have Rugby already which is a very similar sport? I really don't see it passing the test. Specially when besides USA, most other countries are oblivious to American Football or practice Rugby instead (and last time they tried to introduce the sport in Europe making a league, it didn't ended well at all: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NFL_Europe )

Doesn't mean that no one know what American Football is. Canada has a Canadian Football League, which by my understanding is the exact same thing. And while NFL Europe failed, the NFL still has at least one game played in London, and it usually sells out. It's not that no one knows about it, it's that no one cares to know more about it than they already do. And rugby far more popular globally than American Football, but that doesn't mean American football should be excluded from the Olympics based on similarity, it should be excluded because it's not popular enough to be a sport in an event like the Olympics. Now if the US ever hosted the Pan American games, it would be fun to throw that in the mix.

[zekekelso 794]

Tug of War. That's it, nobody else.

[Nacre 213]

Doesn't mean that no one know what American Football is.

People knowing the sport is obviously not the criteria for inclusion. The average score of matches between the USA vs ANY other country would be 72-3.

Baseball and cricket should really be optional sports. For cities like London or Tokyo, the host can make a lot of money on the sport without adding the expense of building a new sporting venue. Meanwhile the USA dominates baseball the same way Englad dominates in cricket. Which is to say that we are humiliated in every competition.

They can't let chess in or they will have to deal with a bunch of other board games pestering them. Why allow chess and not go?

Edited June 15, 2015 by Nacre

[LatinXTC 270]

People knowing the sport is obviously not the criteria for inclusion.

Yes I'm aware of that and that's pretty much what I said.

And chess? lol they should laugh at them and throw their application in their face!

If chess wants to get into the Olympics, make the board and the pieces out of ice and submit it for the WOGs. They're the ones desperate to include sports they let in a glorified shuffleboard game by the name of curling into the Olympics.

[woohooitsme83 297]

Yes I'm aware of that and that's pretty much what I said.

And chess? lol they should laugh at them and throw their application in their face!

If chess wants to get into the Olympics, make the board and the pieces out of ice and submit it for the WOGs. They're the ones desperate to include sports they let in a glorified shuffleboard game by the name of curling into the Olympics.

I can see chess curling be an actual thing lol

[777rak 0]

I would not mind seeing bowling. Tug of war!! I would love to see that.