Five sports, including cricket and flag football, were included in the 2028 Los Angeles Games on Monday after gaining the approval of the International Olympic Committee.
Key points:
- Cricket, squash, baseball/softball, lacrosse and flag football will take place at the 2028 Olympics in LA
- Cricket has not featured at an Olympics since the 1900 Paris Games, where the Devon and Somerset Wanderers beat France on behalf of Great Britain
- Squash and flag football are the only two sports to never feature at an Olympics before
Lacrosse, squash and baseball/softball had also been proposed by LA Games organisers for inclusion and received approval at an IOC meeting in Mumbai.
Each host city, under IOC rules, can request the inclusion of several sports for their edition of the Games.
The five sports had already been given the nod from the powerful IOC executive board last week, with the session on Monday approving its recommendation.
“We are thrilled,” Cricket Australia boss Nick Hockley said.
“This is a game-changer for our sport that is already among the fastest growing in the world. The Olympic Games will undoubtedly increase the global reach of cricket, inspiring a whole new generation to love and play the game.
“The opportunity to win an Olympic medal also provides a new and exciting opportunity for our champion women’s and men’s teams.
“We look forward to working with the Australian Olympic Committee in the lead-up to the Los Angeles Games and are hopeful this will be the start of a long-standing relationship between cricket and the Olympics, including for Brisbane 2032.”
Cricket, which enjoys a massive following in India and has a fast growing global audience, returns to the Games after more than a century, having appeared once at the 1900 Olympics.
The LA Games proposal is for a six-team Twenty20 cricket tournament for men and women.
The IOC hopes cricket’s inclusion will activate and engage a large, new Olympic audience, especially among Asian fans of the sport.
The annual Indian Premier League cricket tournament, with an estimated brand value of $13.2 billion, is one of the richest leagues in the world across sports and continues to attract the world’s top players and coaches to India.
While all five sports’ inclusion is only for one edition of the Games, they are banking on the boost provided by Olympic participation to spur growth as they look to remain an attractive Olympic product going into the next four-year cycle.
“There’s a wonderful opportunity here in Australia and across the globe for all these sports to capture new audiences and participants,” Australian Olympic Committee president Ian Chesterman said.
“I know they are all very excited about the prospect. The beauty of the Olympic sports programme is that there is something for everyone.
“The addition of cricket to the programme is particularly exciting for Australian fans and players alike, given Australia’s long-standing passion for the sport.”
Flag football is a non-contact format of American football played by teams of five.
American football last featured as a demonstration sport in the 1932 LA Games.
Baseball has featured in several previous Games. It was added to the 2020 Tokyo program after being left off in 2012 and 2016, but it will not be a part of the Paris Games.
Softball, the female counterpart to baseball, has appeared at five previous editions of the Summer Games and was also left off the Paris agenda.
Australia won bronze at the 1996, 2000 and 2008 Games, while picking up a silver at Athens 2004.
Lacrosse twice appeared as a medal sport at the Olympics, in 1904 and 1908.
Squash has never featured at the Olympics.
ABC/Reuters
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