FIDE Chess

Snooker, chess and bridge among sports to apply for 2020 Olympics inclusion
Press Association
Friday 12 June 2015 13.16 EDT

Snooker, chess, bridge and tug of war are among the 26 sports to have applied for inclusion in the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo.

Baseball and softball have also applied, as has squash, after they were the sports to miss out when wrestling was reinstated by the International Olympic Committee in 2013 having initially been dropped for 2020.

Squash will be hoping to be included for the first time after missing out to golf and rugby sevens for the 2016 Games while baseball and softball, popular in Japan, is bidding to return having been dropped following Beijing 2008.

The Tokyo 2020 additional event programme panel will now narrow the 26 applicants down to a shortlist to be announced on 22 June, with a final decision due to be made by the IOC in August next year.

The decision will be made based on whether the applicant can “serve as a driving force to promote the Olympic movement and its values, with a focus on youth appeal” and “add value to the Games by engaging the Japanese population and new audiences worldwide, reflecting the Tokyo 2020 Games vision”.

The traditional Japanese sport of sumo has also lodged an application as have karate, American football, tenpin bowling, polo and orienteering.

More here.

 

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