SINGAPORE, 9 July 2005 — The International Olympic Committee (IOC) yesterday struck baseball and softball out of the 2012 Olympics in London despite a plea to preserve the “magic combination” of the current 28 sports, but then failed to agree on replacements.
As a result, the 2012 Olympics will have only 26 sports, two less than there were in Athens. No sport had been cut since polo was dropped in 1936.The IOC was back in session in Singapore after many London delegates had flown home following the explosions that hit the heart of the city’s transit system on Thursday.
The members observed a minute of silence in a tribute to those who died.
“This tragic act has sadly proved that there is no safe haven on this earth and that security must remain the first priority wherever Olympic Games are staged,” said IOC President Jacques Rogge.
Members subsequently voted on the 28 current sports. Baseball and softball failed to receive the majority required to stay on the program. The 26 others were retained, including modern pentathlon and taekwondo, previously considered at risk.
Denis Oswald, president of the Association of Summer Olympics International Federations, the group representing all 28 current sports, warned of the risk of change.
Prior to the vote, Oswald said the list presented “a magic combination of team sports and individuals”.
He attributed the success of the Olympics to the current program. “This is a delicate system,” he said. “You take one piece out and put another piece in, you don’t know the consequences. Baseball was introduced to the Olympics in 1992 with softball following four years later. The two sports will be played at the 2008 Beijing Olympics as the elimination only applies to the London Games.
The decision is seen as a success for Rogge, who favored a major overhaul to make the Games “exciting, attractive, action-packed and athlete focused”. The IOC members then voted on two replacement sports from a waiting list of five: golf, rugby, squash, karate and roller sports. But although karate and squash were considered as the best to take over the two places, both failed to get the required two-thirds of the member’s votes.
Meanwhile, the IOC session accepted a request of the Beijing organizing committee to allow equestrian competitions to be held in Hong Kong. Beijing cited difficulty in establishing a suitable venue in the Chinese capital and fulfilling the international veterinarian regulations. The summer games are fixed at a maximum of 28 sports with 301 medal competitions and 10,500 athletes.
Meantime, senior Kenyan government and Olympic officials appeared set to clash yesterday over whether or not to press ahead with the country’s controversial plans to bid to host the 2016 Olympics.
With Sports Minister Ochilo Ayacko holding to his surprise January announcement that the impoverished east African nation would make a bid, officials at the National Olympic Committee of Kenya (NOCK) were dismissive.
