Special Report: Inside Look into Bidding Sports for 2020 Olympics

Squash

Olympic History:

Squash has petitioned to be in the Olympics for a number of years. They were added to the 2016 list and had the backing of former world number one Peter Nicol. Sadly for them they lost out to golf and rugby sevens.

The Powerhouses:

Egypt and England have by far the most players in the Top 20 rankings for men, with six in total for each nation. Egyptian Ramy Ashour is number one and England’s Nick Matthew is in second. These nations would be favourites for a medal haul.

The Bid:

A big obstacle for squash has always been relaying the action on TV, in a clear and easy to watch manner. Alex Gough, CEO of the Professional Squash Association (PSA) said: “I think in the last three years we’ve filmed 900 matches for online and for the TV side of things we’ve filmed about 75 matches. When we went into this before we didn’t have any of that.”

Why Squash?

There’s a genuine belief that this could be squash’s year. The sport has received high profile backing with Victoria Pendleton, Roger Federer, the England Rugby team and Andy Cole amongst the supporters. Gough said: “Whenever we try and invite British people to see squash, especially for the first time, they’re genuinely blown away at how good the athletes are. They’re blown away by how fast the sport is and how athletic everyone is, so to have those endorsements from people who have won Olympic gold is really great for us.”

Wakeboarding

Olympic History:

Wakeboarding is another new arrival and cable wakeboarding will be on show at the 2020 Games if they are selected. The International Waterski and Wakeboard Federation (IWWF) have been recognised by the IOC since 1967.

The Powerhouses:

Germany, the USA, Australia and Great Britain are amongst the strongest nations. South Korea also possesses Im San who would be a medal contender if Wakeboarding is added to the programme.

The Bid:

The IWWF has really pushed their content to the IOC, through DVDs, brochures and the creation of their specialised Task Force. The main aspects show that the sport is environmentally friendly and costs little to install. As President Kuno Ritschard says, it “gives everyone an opportunity to participate.”

Why Wakeboarding?

Engaging the youth is a huge aspect that the IOC is looking for from all the sports and Wakeboarding does this. Ritschard thinks this give his sport every chance of winning by saying “Wakeboarding, like most of the other boardsports is strongly youth driven and seeing the interest which snowboarding created in Vancouver, we believe that Wakeboard would become a similar success with young spectators, TV viewers and users of social media. It could be the uniting sport for all boardsports in the Summer Olympic Games.”

Wrestling

Olympic History:

Wrestling was demoted to this list by the IOC earlier in 2013. Considering the sport has been in the modern Olympic Games from the beginning, the decision to axe them was surprising. Considered by many as a true Olympic sport, the sport has to enter into a new chapter of their history to try and regain their status.

The Powerhouses:

At London 2012 Russia and Japan finished with four gold medals each, with Russia taking 11 medals in total. Iran, Azerbaijan and the USA completed the top five in the last Summer Olympics.

The Bid:

It’s perhaps unsurprising that all of the top five countries protested loudly about the decision to drop Wrestling. But what else has been done? FILA President Raphael Martinetti stepped down after a bid of no confidence against him and Wrestling is focusing on lobbying ahead of the IOC meeting in May.

Why Wrestling?

The obvious reason for Wrestling to be in the 2020 Olympic Games, is the argument that it should never have been demoted in the first place. Theodoros Hamakos, Vice-President of FILA Europe said: “The decision for us was a big surprise. We never expected this. We waited respect for the history and contributions of wrestling. But, like wrestling teaches us, we wrestling and hope.” Hamakos also added that they were “confident” Wrestling would succeed.

Wushu

Olympic History:

The International Wushu Federation (IWUF) has tried and failed in the past to become an Olympic sport. In 2008, the IOC did allow China to organise an event called the 2008 Olympic Games Wushu Tournament during the Beijing Olympics, however this was not recognised as an official event.

The Powerhouses:

During that event, China finished top of the medal table with eight golds. Russia, Italy, France, Malaysia and other Asian nations are amongst the strongest countries.

The Bid:

There are many reasons why the sport thinks it should be in the Games and their bid has pushed the fact that it is a low cost sport, thus contributing to the Financial Viability of the Games. Wushu has also released figures showing that is not just an Asian game (47 European countries compete) and they have high television broadcasting rates.

Why Wushu?

Apart from the facts mentioned above, Raymond Smith, President of European Wushu Federation said: “It caters for the fit athlete that wants to compete and offers a great platform for this with beautiful exciting movement. Concerning the Olympic Program we are able to offer a great selection of events that capture the audience with visual performances.”

So there they are, the eight sports that are hoping to be added to the 2020 Olympic Games. But what do you think? Which sport has provided the most convincing bid and which one do you want to see at the next Olympics.

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