Exclusive: All Bidding Sports for 2020 Games are ‘Outsiders’ says Wakeboarding President

February 25, 2013

By Steve Moorhouse

All eight sports bidding to be involved in the 2020 Olympic Games are ‘outsiders’ according to the President of wakeboarding.

The IOC recently dropped wrestling from the Olympic programme and the sport now joins wakeboarding, remedy karate, shop wushu, clinic sport climbing, baseball/softball, roller sports and squash in bidding for the right to participate in the 2020 Games.

Kuno Ritschard, President of International Waterski & Wakeboard Federation (IWWF) believes that wakeboarding has a good chance of being selected, because of the IOC’s youth-orientated approach, but conceded that all eight sports are outsiders.

Speaking exclusively to iSportconnect, Ritschard said: “All the contenders are actually outsiders. The IOC has a very difficult job to do and all have been offered the same opportunity to present themselves as best they can.

“Nobody has any idea of what the outcome might be. If the requirement is to add a new, successful youth focussed lifestyle sport which provides easy low cost access to all and generates pollution free, high return on investment for host cities, wakeboard must be one of the most likely sports to be selected.”

Wrestling’s omission came as a big shock as the sport has been a part of the modern Olympic programme from the very beginning.

Ritschard pointed to the IOC session in Guatemala in 2012, when the IOC President said the Games must adapt to today’s young generation.

With this in mind, Ritschard previously argued that wrestling could not be put back in to the Olympic programme.

His views were disputed by the International Federation of Associated Wrestling (FILA), who said that forgetting the history of the Olympics could spell the end for wrestling.

You can read the full Featured Profile interview with Kuno Ritshcrad, on wakeboard’s bid for the 2020 Olympic Games here >>