MUMBAI: Cricket’s more than 100-year Olympic exile moved closer to ending after the sport was approved for inclusion at the 2028 Los Angeles Games by the International Olympic Com­m­ittee’s executive board on Friday.

IOC president Thomas Bach, speaking after the second day of an executive board meeting in Mumbai, said officials had accepted a proposal by LA organisers for Twenty20 cricket to be included as one of five new sports together with baseball/softball, flag football (non-contact American football), squash and lacrosse, leaving them with one last hurdle to seal their Olympic spots.

Each host city, under IOC rules approved a few years ago, can request the inclusion of several sports for their edition of the Games.

But the final choice of which sports are on the 2028 programme will be voted on Monday at the IOC session in Mumbai, one of the hotbeds of cricket, as India hosts the men’s 50-over Cricket World Cup.

“These proposals have been accepted as a package by the IOC Executive Board,” Bach told a press conference at the end of the executive board meeting.

“Taking into consideration that these proposals and these sports are fully in line with the sports culture of our hosts in 2028, with the American sports culture, they will showcase iconic American sports to the world while bringing at the same time international sports to the Unites States.

“For the IOC, it is a great opportunity to engage with new athlete and fan communities. We see the growing popularity of T20 cricket and we look forward to welcoming the world’s best players to the US in 2028.”

Los Angeles chiefs have proposed a six-team event, in both men’s and women’s T20 cricket, with the United States set to field sides as the host nation.

But no firm decision on the number of teams or how they are qualified will be taken unless and until cricket receives formal ratification on Monday.

Cricket last featured at the 1900 Paris Olympics, when a team from Britain beat a side representing France.

The sport has made moves towards a return to the Games for more than a decade, with the encouragement of the Olympic movement.

Adding cricket to the Olympic programme is an obvious move, financially speaking.

It would tap into the lucrative south Asian market, attracting fans in countries such as India and Pakistan.

T20 cricket is the sport’s shortest international format.

The Indian Premier League, featuring cricket’s global stars, has helped India become the unquestioned economic driving force of the sport, thanks to legions of fans and lucrative broadcasting deals in a nation where the game is almost a religion.

Cricket, which originated in England, developed as a global sport via the growth of the British Empire, with its leading established nations including Australia, New Zealand, India and South Africa.

But Bach said were cricket to be included at the Olympic Games it would strengthen its appeal beyond the sport’s traditional nations.

“This is a win-win situation,” he said. “This will give cricket an opportunity to grow beyond traditional territories and nations.”

NO HORSES

The IOC board also recommended the inclusion of modern pentathlon, after the international federation (UIPM) replaced horse riding with an obstacle running course following a horse-hitting scandal at the Tokyo 2021 Olympics.

“UIPM was challenged..., finding a replacement for riding as one of the sports five disciplines, and that is exactly what we have done,” said UIPM president Klaus Schormann. “Paying close attention to reducing the cost and complexity of the sport and adding appeal for youth and the general public.”

Weightlifting also secured its Olympic spot for Los Angeles after changes were made to its anti-doping testing procedures, among other things. Both sports had been provisionally left out of the LA Games.

While all five new sports’ inclusion is only for one edition of the Games, they are banking on the boost provided by Olympic participation to spur growth as they look to remain an attractive Olympic product going into the next four-year cycle.

Flag football is a non-contact format of American football played by teams of five.

Baseball was featured in several previous Games. It was added to the 2020 Tokyo program after being left off in 2012 and 2016, but it will not be a part of the Paris Games.

Softball, the female counterpart to baseball, has appeared at five previous editions of the Summer Games and was also left off the Paris agenda.

IOC sports director Kit McConnell said the proposed schedule would see LA 2028 exceeding the IOC’s previously announced limit of 10,500 athletes — a quota imposed to limit the host nation’s costs in staging a Games.

McConnell added the IOC aimed to “limit the increase, but limit the impact on the existing sport”.

Meanwhile, the status of boxing at the 2028 Games remains uncertain after the IOC stripped the International Boxing Association of its recognition following a dispute over how the sport is governed.

Boxing has been part of every Olympics since 1920 and will feature at next year’s Paris Games.

But in June, the International Boxing Association was effectively expelled from the Olympic movement following a bitter dispute between Games chiefs and its Russian president, Umar Kremlev.

This following concerns over the credibility of IBA sanctioned tournaments as well as the boxing governing body’s finances and governance.

“We want boxing on the programme,” said Bach. “We have no problem, with boxing or boxers — we have a problem with the governing body.”

Published in Dawn, October 14th, 2023