Five Sports Added – Fastpitch Returns

It may have taken far too long for some, but the International Olympic Committee (IOC) made it official and approved five (5) new sports for the Tokyo Games in 2020.

While five were named they are reinitiating baseball and softball as returning to the games since the 2008 Beijing Games.

Some might question the other four, but those involved in the new additions are welcoming the addition to the Games.

The IOC approved Karate, Skateboarding, Rock Climbing and surfing as new sports as part of its IOC Session in advance of the Rio Olympics.

It should be noted that Men’s Baseball and Women’s Softball only count as one sport and not one each.

This decision comes as a first under Agenda 2020 (apparently) a set of proposals meant to make bidding for and hosting the Games more affordable and sustainable, while allowing any host city to propose new sports for their Olympics.

The decision now see’s the addition 18 events and 474 athletes across the five sports.

All, with the exception of baseball and softball will have the identical number of men and women competing

These sports will now have the same number of teams but fewer female athletes as softball teams have 15 players and baseball teams have 24.

One concern the IOC members have raised is about getting the best caliber baseball players for the games.

With the games running from July 24^th – Aug. 9^th this would interrupt MLB and the MLB Owners and MLB Players Association would be forced to reduce their 162 game schedules to allow players to attend.

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred did mention “We are excited about the IOC’s announcement restoring Baseball and Softball to the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.”

He continued “We are grateful to the IOC Executive Board, the Tokyo 2020 Organizing Committee and the World Baseball Softball Confederation for their collective efforts, which will allow fans throughout the world to again enjoy Baseball and Softball on the Olympic stage.”

President of the IOC Thomas Bach stated “We want to take sport to the youth. With the many options that young people have, we cannot expect any more that they will come automatically to us. We have to go to them. Tokyo 2020’s balanced proposal fulfils all of the goals of the Olympic Agenda 2020 recommendation that allowed it. Taken together, the five sports are an innovative combination of established and emerging, youth-focused events that are popular in Japan and will add to the legacy of the Tokyo Games.”

President of the Tokyo 2020 Yoshiro Mori stated “The inclusion of the package of new sports will afford young athletes the chance of a lifetime to realize their dreams of competing in the Olympic Games – the world’s greatest sporting stage – and inspire them to achieve their best, both in sport and in life.”

The decision was made at the 129^th IOC Session in Rio de Janeiro and was (apparently) the most comprehensive evolution of the Olympic program in modern day history.

Olympic Agenda 2020 is the strategic roadmap for the future of the Olympic Movement. The 40 recommendations are like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle that, when you put together, form a picture that shows the IOC safeguarding the uniqueness of the Olympic Games and strengthening sport in society.

Some of the key areas addressed by Olympic Agenda 2020 are:

• Changes to the candidature procedure, with a new philosophy to invite potential candidate cities to present a project that fits their sporting, economic, social and environmental long-term planning needs.
• Reducing costs for bidding, by decreasing the number of presentations that are allowed and providing a significant financial contribution from the IOC.