The Olympic Games are the largest sporting event in the world and in which 32 different sports are presentedat least in this edition of Paris 2024.
Some sports that today have become the most popular disciplines at the time They went through the phase of being an exhibition sport to find out if they attracted the public’s attention or if they were convinced by the original idea to get the maximum performance from the athletes.
They were shown with the intention of promoting an activity, but outside the official competition programme. Sometimes some of these disciplines made the cut and managed to establish themselves in the Olympic programme.
For this reason, this note delves into the different sports that have been proposed, the history of this way of displaying a sport and what has remained.
What is an exhibition sport?
Demonstration sports are a demonstration that takes place within the two weeks of competition at the Olympic Games. to consider the possibility of adding them to the Olympic program.
These do not have the official category or the same status as the rest of the disciplines a competition with the aim of making local traditions known or being promoted to official sport, something that has happened with sports such as, for example, basketball.
Traditionally, medals awarded for demonstration events followed the same design as Olympic medals, but in a smaller size. They are never included in the medal count.
When did sports exhibitions at the Olympic Games begin?
Exhibition sports were officially introduced at the 1912 Summer Olympicswhen Sweden decided to include the glimatraditional Icelandic wrestling, was included in the Olympic programme, but its medals did not count as official.
Most of the organizing committees They then decided to include at least one exhibition sport in each edition of the Games, normally some typical or popular sport in the host country.such as baseball at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics and taekwondo at the 1988 Seoul Olympics.
From 1912 to 1992, only two editions of the Olympic Games They did not have exhibition sports in your program.
Therefore, starting with the 2016 Olympic Games, a requirement was reintroduced for future committees to introduce new sports. For the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Permission was granted to organize a Wushu competition, without it being considered an exhibition sport.
Will sports be on display at Paris 2024?
Besides the climbinghe skateboarding and the surfwhich premiered in Tokyo in 2021Paris 2024 has the break dancing among its additional sports. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) had also revealed the arrival of eight other events. Three are candles (kitesurf, 470 y ocean racing) and two of canoeing (extreme slalom female and male). A new weight category in the women’s boxinghe skeet mixto (shooting), as well as a test of athletics which replaces the 50 km (also mixed) will also be part of the festival.
#Olympic #demonstration #sports
