Yeah, for sure, but not in exchange for wrestling. Take out rhythmic gymnastics or something. There is more than enough gymnastics represented at the games. And they should be, but we can live without ribbon dancing.
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no ribbon dancing? what will the world come to?
i agree with you though.
is ribbon dancing really an olympic event?
Yeah, it really is. Youtube rhythmic gymnastics and tell me that isn't ribbon dancing! :D
It's not that I have a problem with rhythmic gymnastics. It's a very difficult thing to do. But gymnastics has a ton of events, I chose to pick on that one cause it's an easier target and to be honest, I like the rest. I could say the same thing about swimming. Drop synchronized and a few of the forty thousand events they have. It's just insulting that so many sports are over represented and now they thought about removing a TRUE core olympic sport and replace it with stuff that is relatively new.
I don't care about discus, but I would never even consider taking it out. The reasons should be rather obvious IMO.
I don't think that's quite the problem addressed in the article. Keeping an audience is surely an important factor (and TKD might be updating itself to increase audience appeal with new sexier uniforms for females) but that's a challenge all sports face. Keep in mind, I'm a former NCAA fencer and saw some radical changes in the sport to 'increase audience appeal' including the reversal of how the sport was scored (fencing used to be scored by points lost not points won which was confusing as the loser had the higher score) and the electrification of saber. But as I read that article, it's more about the NGB of Wrestling being ****y idiots. They weren't participating in IOC events and were flippant about necessary paperwork. With dozens of international sports bending over backwards to get Olympic acceptance and all of the others struggling to maintain status, that's not an intelligent approach. Clearly, it was the fault of the NGB, In order to be Olympic, a sport must toe the line to the IOC. They failed to do so and a blatantly brash way and got ejected.
I hear you, and like I said, we now have ten years to get our house in order. But I still think it comes down to money. It's kinda like saying the US invaded Iraq cause saddam was a bad guy. Sure, that may be a good reason for some, but it clearly was not the main motivation. I feel that is a fair parallel for this scenario. If wrestling was the top earner, we all know they would have been on their doorstep with paperwork in hand. Know what I mean?
Wrestling is a core olympic sport, no matter what happens. That's just that.
im not watching Olympics until they introduce naked oiled pankration and armored race in full hoplite armor.
I'm sure you all answered the opening question correctly.
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Karate’s long fight to make the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games
Krista Rogers 21 hours ago
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Question: Which of the following is not an official Olympic medal sport? Is it A) Judo, B) Taekwondo, or C) Karate? If you guessed C) Karate, then you answered correctly.
It may come as a surprise to you that karate is not an official Olympic sport, despite its widespread popularity throughout the world. In fact, karate has been rejected by the International Olympic Committee on three separate occasions. However, the upcoming 2020 Tokyo Olympics have created a new movement for official adoption, along with a new strategy.
Judo made its Olympic debut in the 1964 Tokyo games, having been featured in all but one Olympics up to the present. Taekwondo made its grand entrance during the 2000 Sydney games. So why is karate – far older than established Olympic events such as table tennis, water polo, and volleyball – not among them?
There are actually a multitude of reasons, including the fact that there are so many different styles of karate, each one having different lineages, focuses, philosophies, and number of forms. It’s near impossible to pick just one to use for official purposes at the Olympics — it would be like proclaiming that one style more “correct” than the others. However, karate is already an official sport in the Asian Games, which are held every four years and are billed as the second-largest multi-sport event after the Olympics. So perhaps all hope is not lost…
Enter Kyokushin (極真; literally: “the ultimate truth”), a style of full contact karate that was founded in 1964 by the Korean-Japanese martial artist Masutatsu Oyama/Choi Young-Eui. There are estimated to be over 12,000,000 practitioners of Kyokushin karate spread out over 120 countries around the world, with over 230 organizations in Japan alone. Due to its strong emphasis on hard techniques (a martial arts term that refers to the priority given to countering force with force), Kyokushin has often been seen as actual combat fighting rather than a sport, a view which has hindered its progress towards inclusion in the Olympics.
▼Kyokushin’s emphasis on contact sparring
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Tokyo’s winning bid to host the 2020 Games has sparked renewed efforts to include karate as an Olympic sport for the first time ever in the country of its origin. However, this time, the endeavor will aim to promote both a traditional style of karate with softer techniques (in which the force of the opponent is deflected while exerting minimal force), as well as the hard-technique Kyokushin style. The two styles will try to advance together in the hopes of making the Olympic cut. If their joint effort succeeds, they will become two separate Olympic disciplines, similar to how both freestyle and Greco-Roman wrestling are included on the official roster.
Furthermore, if both of the styles make the cut this time around, there may be negative consequences for taekwondo, the Korean martial art with an emphasis on powerful kicking. Taekwondo has already suffered from poor TV ratings during past Olympics, and with its similarities to Kyokushin karate, there has already been talk of dropping it from the Games altogether.
▼A video in which a Kyokushin karate fighter goes head to head with a taekwondo martial artist
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8eoo__0Ki0c
This writer is by no means an expert in the various disciplines of martial arts, let alone karate, so if you have any reflections about the possible inclusion of karate in future Olympics, please feel free to share your insights with the rest of us in the comments section below.
That would certainly be a slap in the face to wushu promoters. But maybe they need a slap in the face. ;)
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IOC passes votes on bidding, sports and TV channel
By STEPHEN WILSON, AP Sports Writer
Updated 7:01 pm, Monday, December 8, 2014
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IOC President Thomas Bach delivers a speech at the start of the 127 th International Olympic Committee session in Monaco, Monday, Dec. 8, 2014. The IOC has approved plans for a more flexible sports program, a move that could lead to the inclusion of baseball and softball at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. The International Olympic Committee voted in favor of the revised system on the opening morning of a special two-day session to adopt President Thomas Bach’s 40-point
MONACO (AP) — Thomas Bach never thought it would be this easy.
In rapid fashion and without a single vote against or even an abstention, the International Olympic Committee on Monday overwhelmingly approved its president's 40-point reform package — the biggest shake-up of the organization in decades.
"Even in my wildest dreams I would not have expected this," Bach said after the delegates unanimously backed his plans for a more affordable bidding system, creation of an Olympic television channel and a more flexible sports program. "That it would go this way was a very, very positive surprise."
Bach moved decisively since his election in September 2013 to put his stamp on the presidency and rally support for his "Olympic Agenda 2020" reforms, marking the most sweeping changes since the Salt Lake City bid scandal in 1999.
A vote scheduled to take place over 1 ½ days was wrapped up in just one day. The only thing that didn't pass unanimously was a suggestion for a coffee break
"I hope in 20 years I can look back to this day with satisfaction and happiness and maybe a little bit of relief," Bach said.
Among other measures approved was the rewording of the IOC's non-discrimination policy to include sexual orientation — a move that followed the controversy over Russia's law against gay "propaganda" ahead of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.
The IOC abolished the cap of 28 sports for the Summer Games to move to an "events-based" system that would allow new competitions to come in, while keeping to about 10,500 athletes and 310 medal events.
Host cities will also be allowed to propose the inclusion of one or more additional events for their games.
The new rules clear the way for Tokyo organizers to request that baseball and softball be included in the 2020 Games. Both sports, dropped after the 2008 Beijing Games, are highly popular in Japan.
"Today, there is excitement circulating around the baseball and softball world and there is great hope that our athletes will now have a real opportunity ... to play for their country, aiming to win an Olympic gold medal," said Riccardo Fraccari, president of the World Baseball Softball Confederation.
Other sports like squash and karate are also hopeful of joining the Tokyo program. In addition, new disciplines and events within existing sports could also be considered. Some events may need to be dropped to make room for new ones.
"This is a major breakthrough," senior Canadian member **** Pound said. "We were at a dead-end situation with 28 sports. This provides the flexibility we need."
The new bidding process, meanwhile, is aimed at making the system cheaper and more flexible to attract future candidates — including the option of holding events outside the host city or country.
The votes came at a time when many countries have been scared off by the costs of hosting the Olympics, including the reported $51 billion associated with the Sochi Games. Several cities withdrew from the bidding for the 2022 Winter Olympics, leaving only Beijing and Almaty, Kazakhstan, in the running.
The new system makes the process more of an "invitation" and allows prospective candidates to discuss their plans in advance with the IOC to tailor games to their own needs.
In the most radical change, the reforms open the door to possible joint bids by cities, neighboring countries or regions.
Bach said joint bids or events held in different countries would be allowed only "in exceptional cases."
The IOC backed the launch of a digital TV channel — possibly as early as next year — to promote Olympic sports between the games and engage with young viewers. The channel will feature material from the IOC's archives, transmit some international sports competitions and offer a promotional platform for bid cities.
The IOC said the channel — to be run by the Madrid-based Olympic Broadcasting Services — will cost $600 million to operate over the first seven years, with the goal of breaking even in the first decade.
The new Principle 6 clause says the Olympics should be free of discrimination "of any kind, such as race, color, sex, sexual orientation, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status."
Former Olympic diving gold medalist Greg Louganis said the new wording removes all doubt about the interpretation of the clause.
" Today's move will make it clear about open hearts and open minds in the spirit of the Olympic Games," he said.
If ninjitsu made the Olympics....if only. ;)
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Former Tourism Agency chief Hiroshi Mizohata (first row, right) joins governors and mayors from Mie, Shiga and Kanagawa prefectures in dressing up as ninja Sunday to announce the launch of the Ninja Council to promote tourism to Japan. | AFP-JIJI
National
Ninja Council is formed to kick up tourism
AFP-JIJI, Kyodo
Mar 9, 2015
Officials are enlisting one of Japan’s best-known historical figures — the ninja — to encourage tourism.
Governors and mayors from prefectures around the country traded their usual bland suits for ninja costumes Sunday to announce the launch of the Ninja Council.
The council sees local authorities forming alliances with tourism agencies to thrust the ninja — usually known for their ability to become nearly invisible — into the spotlight.
The council will gather and provide information on its website about the feudal-era martial arts masters and assassins and about tourist destinations, organizers said.
It will also respond to inquiries from home and abroad, and is scheduled to host events to boost the popularity of the dark warriors.
Ninja are a “subject that always comes up whenever we go abroad to promote tourism,” said Hiroshi Mizohata, former head of the Japan Tourism Agency, which is part of the transport ministry.
The not-so-stealthy move comes as villages, towns and cities turn to tourism as a promising driver of economic growth ahead of the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo.
“Through ninja, we want to revive our communities,” said Mie Gov. Eikei Suzuki, which is known as the home of the Iga school of ninjutsu.
If it comes down to Karate, Wushu or Ninjitsu, you know where my alliance lies. ;)
poor photo choice...:rolleyes:Quote:
Wushu Bids Again for Olympic Inclusion
EL Borromeo | Mar 07, 2015 07:43 AM EST
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Wushu is a Chinese martial art regularly featured at Asian-wide sports events. (Photo : pl.wikipedia.org)
The International Wushu Federation recently announced its plans to bid again for Wushu’s inclusion in the Olympics.
In a Jakarta Post report, Anthony Goh, the federation's executive vice president said that they "have to undertake another bidding process."
Goh further emphasized the need to expand the reach of the Chinese martial art. Wushu has been a regular feature during Asian multi-sports events such as the Southeast Asian Games and the Asian Games.
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Meanwhile, Wushu enthusiasts and advocates are eyeing on the increased participation of Africans and Americans once the bid is approved. According to them, joining this sport could aid their chances, as they have previously missed out to the combat sort like wrestling.
According to Goh, Wushu will be featured in the upcoming All-African Games in August. It will also land a spot at the 2019 Pan American Games where athletes from over 41 countries in the North, Central and South America will participate.
"We need to develop regions where Wushu is less developed. We have to feature more often in multi-international games, like the African Games and the Pan American Games," he remarked.
Wushu was among the eight sports vying for inclusion in the 2020 Olympics. However, it failed to make it on the shortlist of three chosen by the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
However, after the IOC overhauled a number of rules in a December meeting which allows sports to have an easier way of having an Olympic spot, Wushu advocates still see a future for the martial art to be included in the future editions of the international games.
Meanwhile, Wushu is also expected to be included in the 2020 Games of Tokyo line-up.
There are YouTube vids of all the sports mentioned if you follow the link. I only cut & pasted the Wushu one because our forum only allows one vid per post so to post them all would have been laborious.
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7 Weird Sports That Could Be in the Next Olympics
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Olympic Events
Credit: Richard Bouhet / AFP / Getty Images
Sometimes the Olympics feels a lot more like Color War at a teen sleepaway camp than an actual world-class athletic competition. Most kids in America grow up playing Little League baseball, Pop Warner football, or even soccer, minus the bribes and fraud (probably).
But if you've ever wondered where they pick up unique and sometimes weird sports, short of the bucket brigade and parachute games, that seem to only really have a home in the Olympics, the list of semi-mainstream, non-traditional games is about to get longer.
Some 26 sports have applied for inclusion at the 2020 Tokyo Game, ranging from some we know very well, like baseball, softball, and football, to the wild and wacky like korfball. Tug-of-war is looking to make an appearance at the Olympics for the first time since 1920, so look for recruiting offices to pop up near the local all-you-can-eat buffets.
Here are seven wild and potentially awesome new Olympic sports that have applied.
Bowls
This is basically lawn bowling, in which the objective is to roll weighted balls as close to a target without actually hitting it. Because hitting a bowl is an entirely different activity.
Floorball
Also known as floor hockey. No ice, no checking, but floorball is pretty badass. Maybe you played it in gym class. A ball is used in place of a puck, goalies wear similar gear, and some of these dudes can flat out dangle.
Korfball
Basketball, but without a backboard. Or dribbling. Players pass and shoot a soccer ball — yes, a soccer ball — into a suspended basket at either end of a court that looks just like a basketball court. It was actually in the Games as a demonstration sport in 1920 and 1928.
Netball
Very similar to korfball, but netball actually has a net instead of a weaved basket to shoot at. According to Netball America, one of the best parts of the game is the self-confidence participants build through playing netball.
Flying Disc
Yes, it's absolutely Ultimate Frisbee. Just like your friends played on the quad in college. But for Olympic medals this time.
Orienteering
Basically "The Amazing Race," in which participants use navigational skills, a map, and compass to navigate from place to place against a clock. Mix that with cross-country running, and you get orienteering, a game where the best performance enhancer is an iPhone with Google Maps.
Wushu
A Chinese blend of martial arts and dance, similar to a gymnastics floor routine, that can be an exhibition or actual hand-to-hand combat. Competitive wushu is made up of two elements: forms and sparring.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nuyM2DVpIHU
The International Olympic Committee will narrow the list down to the most, ahem, serious contenders later this month. A final ruling will be made by August 2016, leaving aspiring orienteering participants plenty of time to calibrate their compasses.
Here is a list of all 26 international sporting federations to apply for a spot in 2020.
• World Air Sports Federation (FAI)
• International Federation of American Football (IFAF)
• World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC)
• World Confederation of Billiards Sports (WCBS)
• Bowls Sports World Confederation (CMSB)
• World Bowling (WB)
• World Bridge Federation (WBF)
• World Chess Federation (FIDE)
• World DanceSport Federation (WDSF)
• International Floorball Federation (IFF)
• World Flying Disc Federation (WFDF)
• World Karate Federation (WKF)
• International Korfball Federation (IKF)
• International Netball Federation (INF)
• International Orienteering Federation (IOF)
• Federation of International Polo (FIP)
• International Racquetball Federation (IRF)
• International Federation of Roller Sports (FIRS)
• International Federation of Sport Climbing (IFSC)
• World Squash Federation (WSF)
• International Sumo Federation (IFS)
• International Surfing Association (ISA)
• Tug of War International Federation (TWIF)
• World Underwater Federation (CMAS)
• International Waterski & Wakeboard Federation (IWWF)
• International Wushu Federation (IWUF)
Similarity to judo and taekwondo? I think not.Quote:
Wushu in shortlist of added events for 2020 Olympics
Posted on: 01:48 PM IST Jun 23, 2015
IANS
Tokyo: Wushu has been included in a shortlist of sports seeking to join the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
The Tokyo Olympic Organising Committee accepted eight of the 26 sports that sought to be added to the 2020 Games, including a joint bid from baseball and softball. The seven others were bowling, karate, roller sports, sport climbing, squash, surfing and wushu, reports Xinhua.
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The Tokyo Games organisers could further trim down the list before they submit the final list to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) by September 30. The IOC will vote on which events will be added to the 28 core sports at its Session in August ahead of next summer's Rio de Janeiro Olympics.
After years of efforts to be added as an Olympic programme, Wushu, a traditional Chinese sport, finally has another chance after the Chinese failed to add it to the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
Chinese fans are pleased with the news and at the same time cautious about the sport's Olympic future. But some are concerned that Wushu's similarity with other combat sports like judo and taekwondo may well affect its chance.
This really doesn't have any impact on the IOC's decision at all, but it is amusing that Wushu is on the bottom.
Quote:
3:44 pm JST
Jun 24, 2015 GAMES
Vote Results: Bowling, Karate Top Readers’ Choices for Tokyo Olympics
By WSJ STAFF
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A mother and her son receive a bowling lesson in New Jersey, circa 1955. Getty Images
One of America’s favorite pastimes and Japan’s traditional martial arts sport were the sports readers would most like to see added to the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo.
Following the Tokyo 2020 organizing committee’s announcement Monday that it had narrowed down the list of sports that might be added to the Games, Japan Real Time asked readers to pick their favorite.
Bowling received about half of the roughly 40,000 votes cast as of 2 p.m. Wednesday, while karate got 17,304.
Ranking well behind in third place was baseball/softball with only 1,008 votes, followed by surfing, roller sports and squash. The two least popular choices were sport climbing and wushu, another martial art.
The organizational federations of the eight sports will have until July 22 to submit more detailed proposals. The committee will then choose one or two sports and submit its proposal to the International Olympic Committee, which will make the final decision in August next year.
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Baseball first became a demo sport in 1904, made official medal status in 1992, and was voted out alongside Softball last time in London in 2012.
32 pix in the gallery but I'm only posting a few SHs.Quote:
2015 Wushu U.S. National Team Trials
Wushu, also known as Kung-Fu, is a Chinese Martial Art and is one of eight finalist sports being considered for inclusion at the upcoming 2020 Olympics in Japan. It consists of different techniques that involve many acrobatic spins and flips along with power. Former wushu celebrities include Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan and Jet Li, who practice it in Hollywood action movies. Here are some photos from the recent U.S. Trials.
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The way I see it is that Wushu only has hard contenders, karate and squash, to make the 2020 Olympic programme. Of course, I hope Wushu win the entry ticket.
Regards.
KC
Hong Kong
The IOC recognizes Bridge as a sport? :confused:
Quote:
Ultimate waits for Olympic moment?
By Victor Mather / New York Times News Service
Published Aug 5, 2015 at 12:08AM
It is a great moment for undergrads hanging out on college quads everywhere. Ultimate Frisbee has been officially recognized by the International Olympic Committee.
But this does not mean that the sport — commonly known as simply “ultimate” — will take its place in the Summer Games alongside venerable sports like track, basketball and synchronized swimming.
Ultimate instead joins a ragtag group of sports that are “recognized” but not actually in the Olympics.
In June, the IOC chose eight of these as candidates to be added to the 2020 Games: baseball/softball, bowling, karate, roller sports, sport climbing, squash, surfing and wushu, a martial art. The choice will be made next summer, and in all likelihood only one or two will make the cut.
That leaves ultimate on a still lower tier that includes sports like American football, auto racing, chess and sumo.
Here is a look at 10 of those IOC-recognized sports, any of which could, theoretically, be as big as, well, team handball.
Air sports
What is it? A wide variety of sports taking place in the air, including parachuting, hang gliding, ballooning and airplane racing.
Who is the Babe Ruth of the sport? Larry Tudor was known as Part Bird for his hang gliding feats in the 1980s.
Who will get the medals if it joins the games? The wealthiest European countries and the United States hold most of the records in these expensive sports.
Is there a movie about it? Phileas Fogg (David Niven) begins his journey “Around the World in 80 Days” (1956) in a balloon, although he soon changes his mode of transport.
Bandy
What is it? Ice hockey on a much larger rink with more players.
Who is its Babe Ruth? Peter the Great was said to have been an enthusiast.
Who will get the medals? Russia and Sweden dominate competition for both men and women.
Is there a movie? Not really, but a character in “There Will Be Blood” (2007) is named Bandy.
Boules
What is it? Also called bocce, bowls, or pétanque, it involves rolling balls as close as possible to another ball.
Who is its Babe Ruth? Umberto Granaglia, who won 13 world titles.
Who will get the medals? At the last World Games, an event featuring non-Olympic sports, France and Italy won the men’s gold medals, as you might expect, while China picked up two women’s golds.
Is there a movie? “Blackball” (2003) features Vince Vaughn as the agent of a bad boy British bowls player.
Bridge
What is it? A card game played by partners.
Who is its Babe Ruth? The actor Omar Sharif was a top-level bridge player and author.
Who will get the medals? The United States and Western Europe dominate the Bermuda Bowl, the most prestigious event. Bridge could also bring Monaco a chance for its first Olympic medal.
Is there a movie? “Grand Slam” (1933) starred Paul Lukas and Loretta Young. “It is not an attempt to elucidate the fine points of the game, but merely a popular entertainment,” said The New York Times.
Dance sport
What is it? Competitive ballroom dancing.
Who is its Babe Ruth? Arunas Bizokas and Katusha Demidova, a Lithuanian and a Russian now representing the United States, have won seven consecutive world titles.
Who will get the medals? The United States, if Bizokas and Demidova are still active.
Is there a movie? “Strictly Ballroom” (1992) and “Silver Linings Playbook” (2012).
Floorball
What is it? Indoor hockey using a plastic ball with holes.
Who is its Babe Ruth? Mika Kohonen has been voted best player in the world five times.
Who will get the medals? Sweden or Finland.
Is there a movie? According to an IMDB summary of the short film “Onnelliset läskit” (2010): “Little Esa is a talented floor ballplayer who is worshipped by his father. After a well-played game, Esa accidentally bumps into Elvis. The singer instantly becomes Esa’s one and only idol.”
Life saving
What is it? Several events that test lifeguard skills, including swimming under obstacles, recovering a submerged dummy from underwater and pulling a teammate by a rope. Events can take place in a pool or in the ocean.
Who is its Babe Ruth? Cornelia Carl of Germany holds the longest standing world record, in the stillwater boat event.
Who will get the medals? Australia, especially in the open water events.
Is there a movie? Although lifeguards have played key roles in movies and in “Baywatch,” competitive life saving awaits its definitive cinematic treatment.
Netball
What is it? Basketball without backboards, played chiefly by women.
Who is its Babe Ruth? Irene van Dyk of New Zealand has won her country’s sportswoman of the year award and is the most capped player in netball history.
Who will get the medals? Australia and New Zealand dominate.
Is there a movie? In the Patrick Dempsey romantic comedy “Made of Honor” (2008), a Scotsman who has only netball experience dominates some Americans in a pickup basketball game.
Pelota vasca
What is it? The term covers a variety of Spanish court sports. One variant is the sport known as jai alai, which can be bet on in Florida.
Who is its Babe Ruth? Mariano Juaristi Mendizábal, known as Atano III, dominated the sport in the 1940s.
Who will get the medals? Spain, of course, but Argentina, Mexico and France have also collected many world championship medals.
Is there a movie? “Pelota” (1983), a documentary, features Atano III and other greats of the game.
Tug of war
What is it? Two sides tug on a rope until one wins. It was included in the Olympics from 1900 to 1920.
Who is its Babe Ruth? Edgar Aaybe was a Danish journalist covering the 1900 Olympics when he was asked to join the Swedish team. They won.
Who will get the medals? Western European teams for men. Taiwan has won numerous women’s gold medals at the World Games.
Is there a movie about it? “Made of Honor,” the movie that gave a shout out to netball, also includes a tug of war scene. All it needs is Patrick Dempsey playing jai alai to be complete.
I wish the writers of those articles wouldn't equate modern performance wushu with all CMA. It's funny the one article says that Bruce Lee trained it. Modern wushu routines would have been the antithesis of what BL would have practiced.
It seems that people in general aren't as impressed with the flashy, acrobatic wushu forms to the same degree they were back in the '80s. Most that remain in awe tend to be people who aren't accustomed to seeing wushu performances at all. And as for pure flash, many of the 'XMA' people have surpassed the wushu people in some areas.
I wonder if MMA will become an Olympic sport. That might resonate.
...but not wushu.
Quote:
Karate, Surfing Among Five Sports Likely to Join 2020 Olympics
Baseball also likely to return to the games under updated IOC rules that make adding sports easier
By Eleanor Warnock
Sept. 28, 2015 6:42 a.m. ET
TOKYO—Five additional sports are likely to join the Olympic Games in 2020, marking a departure from past Olympics, which it was extremely difficult for new sports to join.
Tokyo’s organizing committee Monday proposed five additional sports for inclusion in the 2020 Summer Games: karate, sports climbing, surfing, skateboarding and, under a combined bid, baseball and softball. The International Olympic Committee will make the final decision in August, 2016.
“I think this is a wonderful package of events,” additional event panel head Fujio Mitarai told reporters.
If ratified by the committee, the new sports would serve as evidence that recent changes to IOC rules have succeeded in making it easier for additional sports to be added.
In December 2014, the committee nixed a 28-sport limit, and instead set a cap of 10,500 athletes and 310 medal events at the Summer Games. That means there is no limit on the number of sports, only on the number of medals. Monday’s proposal would add 18 medal events and an additional 474 athletes to the menu.
The new committee guidelines allow the host countries to propose the addition of one or more additional events for their own editions of the Games.
It would be the first Olympic appearance for all of five sports except for baseball and softball. Baseball joined the Olympics as a medal sport in 1992 and softball joined in 1996. The committee voted a decade ago to remove the sports after the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
“We just want to bring it back for all the young girls who had their Olympic dreams interrupted,” said Don Porter, former International Softball Federation president, in an email. Mr. Porter helped softball get its first chance at the Olympics.
Because the new IOC rules give the host city a say in nominating additional sports, both baseball and karate were seen as strong contenders. Karate’s roots lie in what is now Okinawa prefecture, Japan. Baseball is Japan’s most popular spectator sport. Nippon Professional Baseball had the second-highest total attendance of any domestic sports league in the world in 2014.
Mr. Mitarai also said appeal to younger people was an important consideration in the panel’s decision.
“I think that the Olympic Games are an event that should reflect the trends of the times through youth,” he said, citing surfing, climbing and skateboarding as three such sports.
The other finalists not chosen were bowling, squash and wushu.
Write to Eleanor Warnock at eleanor.warnock@wsj.com
Read this over the weekend - it's a more thorough look at the potential of Olympic Karate.
Quote:
Which Kind of Karate Has Olympic Chops?
‘Noncontact’ style hopes to be in Games, splitting sport’s world; rewarding kicks
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Karate hopes to be an event in the 2020 Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo. Photo: TORU YAMANAKA/AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE/GETTY IMAGES
By Eleanor Warnock
Sept. 25, 2015 2:41 p.m. ET
15 COMMENTS
TOKYO—Practitioners of one of the world’s most popular martial arts are beating themselves up over which form of the sport should be represented at the Olympics.
Karate is one of eight events competing to debut in the 2020 Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo. But which karate? The group that the International Olympic Committee has recognized to bid—the World Karate Federation—allows only minimal contact. Yet there are millions of karate fighters in other schools who do follow through with their punches.
Their leaders are crusading to have both styles represented at the Olympics or risk chopping off the dreams of many of the world’s karate kids.
The road to the Tokyo Olympics has already been bumpy for Japan. The government scrapped plans for a new Olympic Stadium (too expensive) and an Olympic logo (allegations of plagiarism). The decision on new events, due Monday, is the next big test on the horizon.
Karate has missed a spot in the Olympics three times before, but officials say the Japan venue and support from high-profile politicians means the time is right to strike. Or just lightly strike, depending on whom you talk to.
It isn’t just honor on the line—there is also money involved. In many countries, inclusion in the Olympics is a prerequisite for receiving government subsidies.
Sayaka Kato, 22 years old, has a world championship under her belt in Shinkyokushin karate, a full-contact style with sharp kicks and punches that uses minimal body protection.
“I’ve gone through my entire life with these rules. I don’t want to compete under different rules,” she says.
The Japan Fullcontact Karate Organization estimates 20 million people around the world practice full-contact karate. Russian President Vladimir Putin has an honorary black belt. The group’s founder was known to kill bulls with his bare hands.
The group collected a million signatures across Japan last year backing the idea of two karate events at the Olympics, full-contact and noncontact. “Millions of children won’t be able to follow their dreams if there aren’t two rules,” says the full-contact group’s chairman, Kenji Midori.
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Sayaka Kato
But the campaign has failed to budge the World Karate Federation, which promotes a style known as noncontact karate. The International Olympic Committee has recognized the World Karate Federation as the international governing body of karate since 1999.
“Having techniques that reward injuring the opponent is not the best message we could give as a sport karate federation,” says World Karate Federation President Antonio Espinos, whose group says it represents more than 90% of organized karate followers.
Mr. Espinos has seven children, all of them with experience in the martial art. “I would have never brought them to practice karate if they told me it was full-contact karate,” he says.
There is another option—koshiki or “safe contact” karate, in which contestants wear a chest protector and headgear. The founder of this school’s federation is Masayuki Kukan Hisataka, who taught karate to the late actor Bruce Lee among others.
Mr. Hisataka says Olympic spectators want to see real hits and action, not shadow boxing.
“The reason karate didn’t get into the Olympics up until now was precisely that it was a noncontact sport,” says Mr. Hisataka. Ciaran Mitchell, who founded a koshiki contact karate organization in the U.K., says karate needs to excite spectators. “I don’t have anything against noncontact karate, but it’s like archery with no target. I can show you how I aim the bow but I don’t shoot.”
Though they are skilled at landing blows in the ring, the contact-karate adherents are relative lightweights in the political arena. The head of the Japan Karate Federation, the local noncontact group, is Takashi Sasagawa, a former longtime member of parliament in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and son of the late right-wing billionaire Ryoichi Sasagawa. Mr. Sasagawa served as a state minister under then-Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori, and Mr. Mori is now head of the Tokyo Olympic organizing committee.
The fight has extended to history, with each side saying its version is faithful to the martial art’s origins.
Karate arose over centuries in the southern island of Okinawa, now a part of Japan, with influence from Chinese martial arts. While little is known about the sport in its infancy, historians say it probably wasn’t about being nice to the other fellow. But after the sport was introduced to mainland Japan in the 1920s, noncontact karate evolved.
Rival schools call the noncontact version too Europeanized and say it benefits long-legged Europeans by rewarding kicks more. “Japan won’t be able to get medals in the Olympics,” says Mr. Hisataka, the “safe contact” proponent.
But Toshihisa Nagura, general secretary of the World Karate Federation, says the noncontact sport inherits the “kata” portion of karate practiced from the early days, in which practitioners carry out moves against an invisible opponent. “Traditional elements were preserved exactly as the old days,” he says.
People familiar with the talks say Tokyo Olympic organizers are likely to include karate in their recommendations for new Olympic sports, which must be ratified by the IOC next year. Others under consideration include bowling, squash and surfing.
Proponents of full-contact karate say they will keep fighting if karate gets in the Olympics, pointing out that the Games feature multiple forms of many sports like swimming and wrestling.
Ms. Kato, the 22-year-old karate champion, sees the culmination of dreams that began when she was a little girl and watched the powerful kicks of her older brother when he was practicing karate.
“I want to win a gold medal with our rules,” she said.
Write to Eleanor Warnock at eleanor.warnock@wsj.com
You really would have to had drank up all the Kool-Aid to be completely surprised.
What 'newly-launched social media campaign' is this? :rolleyes:Quote:
Wushu "disappointed" but "not completely surprised" by Tokyo 2020 failure
By Daniel Etchells Saturday, 3 October 2015
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Anthony Goh, executive vice-president of the International Wushu Federation, is now looking ahead to the sport's attempts to earn a place on the 2024 Olympic programme ©Getty Images
The International Wushu Federation (IWUF) was “disappointed” but “not completely surprised” after the sport it governs missed out on a recommendation to be added to the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic programme, executive vice-president Anthony Goh has said.
Wushu was one of three sports cut from the proposed additions earlier this week along with bowling and squash.
Baseball and softball, karate, skateboarding, sport climbing and surfing were the five selected, with a final decision due at next summer's International Olympic Committee (IOC) Session in Rio de Janeiro.
"When we heard the results from the Tokyo 2020 Committee we were disappointed although not completely surprised," Goh told insidethegames.
"The seven sports we were competing with all had strong attributes, but we feel wushu has risen to the level of world-class sport.
"We will continue our efforts towards inclusion [at] the Olympic Games and we feel very optimistic that 2024 will be wushu’s year.
"Wushu is developing rapidly around the world now, and our newly-launched social media campaign will undoubtedly give our sport a digital potential to reach a new generation."
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Wushu was one of eight sports in the frame for Tokyo 2020 inclusion, but missed out along with bowling and squash ©IWUF
Wushu’s latest disappointment follows its failure to make the final shortlist in the first Tokyo 2020 bidding process, which culminated in wrestling retaining its place on the Olympic sports programme with a clear-cut victory at the 125th IOC Session in Buenos Aires.
Owing to its cultural significance in China, the IOC allowed organisers of the Beijing 2008 Olympics to hold a wushu tournament in parallel with the Games, despite the sport not being an official demonstration sport.
The tournament helped give wushu a huge global boost with IWUF membership increasing from 116 to 149 countries following the conclusion of the Games.
Wushu was one of four demonstration sports at the Nanjing 2014 Youth Olympic Games, alongside climbing, roller skating and skateboarding.
Compare Goh's response above to that of the other rejected sport, squash. :rolleyes:
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Mon Sep 28, 2015 10:57am EDT Related: SPORTS
Squash 'devastated' by Tokyo Olympics snub
TOKYO
The head of the World Squash Federation (WSF) said he was devastated for the sport's millions of followers after squash was again overlooked for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Squash was among eight sports short-listed for possible inclusion at the 2020 Olympics but failed to make the final list of five sports, recommended by Tokyo's organizers on Monday.
The five proposed for the 2020 Summer Games were baseball/softball, karate, skateboard, sports climbing and surfing. Squash, bowling and wushu all missed out.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) will make the final decision next year on which sports will be accepted for Tokyo, choosing from the five that were recommended.
"I don't believe we could have done more to get our message across to both the Tokyo 2020 Games hosts and the IOC how Squash could bring something special as an addition to the Programme," WSF president Narayana Ramachandran said in a statement.
"I know I speak on behalf of the millions of squash players around the world for whom the opportunity of seeing their sport participate in the Olympics has been an absolute priority -- and, like me, they will be heartbroken."
Squash, played in more than 185 countries, was one of three sports short-listed for full inclusion at the Tokyo Olympics when the IOC voted on the program at its 125th Session in Buenos Aires two years ago.
Wrestling won that vote for inclusion ahead of baseball/softball and squash but the losers were thrown a lifeline when the IOC later decided that future Olympic host cities could select extra sports they wanted to see contested at the Games.
"However, this is not the end for squash," added Ramachandran. "Our sport, played by vast numbers week in and week out, flourishes at every level from recreational to events around the world.
"We will go from strength to strength while we continue to target participation at a future date in the Games."
Squash has made great strides in modernizing the sport, with the Professional Squash Association (PSA) taking the game to iconic venues such as New York City's Grand Central Station.
Alex Gough, the PSA chief executive, said the latest setback should not detract from its success.
"The Olympic Games should be the pinnacle of any athlete's career and inclusion in the Tokyo 2020 Games would be a defining moment for squash and our athletes and to know that dream is once again out of reach is naturally a difficult proposition for the sport," Gough said in a statement.
"But I feel we can take a lot of positives from the huge ground we have made over the last decade -- transitioning into a bourgeoning global sport that is now broadcast in almost 100 countries worldwide."
(Writing by Patrick Johnston in Singapore; additonal reporting by Martyn Herman; Editing by Julian Linden)
Karate is looking good
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https://stillmed.olympic.org/media/I...esize=1060:600
IOC/CHRISTOPHE MORATAL
DATE 01 JUN 2016
IOC EXECUTIVE BOARD SUPPORTS TOKYO 2020 PACKAGE OF NEW SPORTS FOR IOC SESSION
THE EXECUTIVE BOARD (EB) OF THE INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC COMMITTEE (IOC) TODAY SUPPORTED THE PROPOSAL TO ADD THE PACKAGE OF FIVE NEW SPORTS TO THE PROGRAMME OF THE OLYMPIC GAMES TOKYO 2020. IF APPROVED AT THE 129TH IOC SESSION IN RIO DE JANEIRO IN AUGUST, THE CHANGE WOULD BE THE MOST COMPREHENSIVE EVOLUTION OF THE OLYMPIC PROGRAMME IN MODERN HISTORY.
The five sports — karate, skateboarding, sports climbing, surfing and baseball/softball — offer a key focus on youth, which is at the heart of the Games vision for Tokyo 2020. They represent a combination of well-established and emerging sports with significant popularity in Japan and beyond. They include team sports and individual sports; indoor sports and outdoor sports; and ‘urban’ sports with a strong appeal to youth.
The package of five sports will now be submitted to the IOC Session. These sports are considered on top of the athlete and event quota recommendations for Olympic sports outlined in Olympic Agenda 2020, and will not take places away from athletes in existing Olympic sports. Discussions on the event programme in the existing 28 Olympic sports for the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 are ongoing, and will be finalised by the IOC Executive Board in mid-2017.
The Organising Committee for the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 proposed the new sports in response to the new flexibility provided by Olympic Agenda 2020, the IOC’s strategic roadmap for the future of the Olympic Movement, to encourage innovation in the Olympic programme. Olympic Agenda 2020 gives host cities the option of suggesting new sports and events for inclusion in their edition of the Games.
The host city selections are not binding on future Games hosts.
The inclusion of the new sports would add 18 events and 474 athletes to the Olympic programme in Tokyo, without impacting existing sports. The package promotes gender equality, with each of the five sports having equal numbers of teams for men and women, while also focusing on innovative and exciting sports for Japan and the wider international community.
###
The International Olympic Committee is a not-for-profit independent international organisation made up of volunteers, which is committed to building a better world through sport. It redistributes more than 90 per cent of its income to the wider sporting movement, which means that every day the equivalent of USD 3.25 million goes to help athletes and sports organisations at all levels around the world.
###
For more information, please contact the IOC Media Relations Team:
Tel: +41 21 621 6000 email: pressoffice@olympic.org, or visit our website at www.olympic.org.
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Beijing is probably annoyed at this. :rolleyes:Quote:
[IMG]https://stillmed.olympic.org/media/Images/OlympicOrg/News/2016/08/03/2016-08-03-five-sports-tokyo-thumbnail.jpg?interpolation=lanczos-none&fit=around|1060:600&crop=1060:600;*,*[/IMG]
IAN JONES/IOC
DATE 03 AUG 2016
IOC APPROVES FIVE NEW SPORTS FOR OLYMPIC GAMES TOKYO 2020
THE INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC COMMITTEE (IOC) TODAY AGREED TO ADD BASEBALL/SOFTBALL, KARATE, SKATEBOARD, SPORTS CLIMBING AND SURFING TO THE SPORTS PROGRAMME FOR THE OLYMPIC GAMES TOKYO 2020.
The decision by the 129th IOC Session in Rio de Janeiro was the most comprehensive evolution of the Olympic programme in modern history. Plans call for staging the skateboarding and sports climbing events in temporary venues installed in urban settings, marking a historic step in bringing the Games to young people and reflecting the trend of urbanisation of sport.
The Organising Committee for the Tokyo 2020 Games proposed the five new sports in response to the new flexibility provided by Olympic Agenda 2020.
Today’s vote was the culmination of a two-year process that began with the unanimous approval of the IOC’s strategic roadmap in 2014. The recommendation to give Organising Committees the flexibility to propose new sports for their edition of the Games was intended to put even more focus on innovation, flexibility and youth in the development Olympic programme.
Tokyo 2020, the first Organising Committee able to take advantage of the change, submitted its proposal for the five new sports to the IOC in September 2015.
IOC President Thomas Bach said, “We want to take sport to the youth. With the many options that young people have, we cannot expect any more that they will come automatically to us. We have to go to them. Tokyo 2020’s balanced proposal fulfils all of the goals of the Olympic Agenda 2020 recommendation that allowed it. Taken together, the five sports are an innovative combination of established and emerging, youth-focused events that are popular in Japan and will add to the legacy of the Tokyo Games.”
Tokyo 2020 President Yoshiro Mori said, “The inclusion of the package of new sports will afford young athletes the chance of a lifetime to realise their dreams of competing in the Olympic Games – the world's greatest sporting stage – and inspire them to achieve their best, both in sport and in life.”
The additional sports in Tokyo will not impact the athlete or event quotas of existing Olympic sports or be binding on future host cities. The current athlete and event quotas are unaffected.
The IOC considered a variety of factors when assessing the proposal, including the impact on gender equality, the youth appeal of the sports and the legacy value of adding them to the Tokyo Games.
The inclusion of the new sports will add 18 events and 474 athletes, with equal numbers of women and men for all sports except baseball/softball, which will have the same number of teams but different player totals, because softball teams have 15 players whilst baseball teams have 24. Tokyo 2020 will rely heavily on existing and temporary venues to stage the competitions.
Discussions on the event programme in the existing 28 Olympic sports for the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 are ongoing, and will be finalised by the IOC Executive Board in mid-2017.
###
The International Olympic Committee is a not-for-profit independent international organisation made up of volunteers, which is committed to building a better world through sport. It redistributes more than 90 per cent of its income to the wider sporting movement, which means that every day the equivalent of USD 3.25 million goes to help athletes and sports organisations at all levels around the world.
###
For more information, please contact the IOC Media Relations Team:
Tel: +41 21 621 6000 email: pressoffice@olympic.org, or visit our website at www.olympic.org.
Videos
YouTube: www.youtube.com/iocmedia
Photos
For an extensive selection of photos available shortly after each event, please follow us on Flickr.
To request archive photos and footage, please contact our Images team at: images@olympic.org.
Social media
For up-to-the-minute information on the IOC and regular updates, please follow us on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube.
I support Sanda to be included in the Olympic Games. With some adaptation in training, many martial stylists (including Taekwondo) can then compete in the event. Let's keep up with our effort and hope to make it a reality in the near future.
Regards,
KC
Hong Kong
Greetings,
They should simply categorize the combative sports under the word which happens to be the modern variant of a much older term: Pankration.
mickey
They (Beijing) should be. Wushu already has a worldwide structure and organization for competition. Wushu is better for spectators to watch, and Sanda is way more exciting than point sparring kumite. The IOC f*cked up. They should have included Wushu before Karate if they want to attract a younger audience.
Becoming an Olympic sport may not be great for karate, if what's happened to TKD is any indication. But as long as they don't mess it up (i.e., "Olympicize" it) too much, it'll probably still remain better than Olympic TKD.
As far as wushu taolu ever being accepted into the Olympics, even though they seem perfectly suitable for Olympic-style competition, IMO that would only provide further confirmation in the minds of non-CMAists (and non-MAists in general) that CMA are only flashy dance/performance routines with no martial applications whatsoever.
... I just can't get past the title "WTF Brain Trust Huddles...."
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Game Changers: WTF Brain Trust Huddles in Seoul to Upgrade Taekwondo Before Tokyo 2020
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SEOUL, Korea (October 17, 2016) – How to upgrade the game? This is arguably the biggest question facing taekwondo as it enters the long cycle of preparation for the Tokyo Olympic Games in 2020.
Fortunately, there are precedents, as, for much of its history, the WTF has been introducing changes and innovations.
Following the 2008 Beijing Olympics – plagued by controversies over scoring and refereeing – the sport’s future on the Olympic program was in jeopardy. The WTF instituted a reform drive. The mission was clear: Improve the transparency and fairness of the game.
The key breakthrough to realize this was the introduction of the electronic protector and scoring system (PSS). The PSS makes all points scored immediately visible to the crowd, while obviating human error in judging. Referee training and education was massively upgraded and the Instant Video Replay system was introduced. Thanks to these developments, taekwondo was controversy-free in London 2012 and Rio 2016 and is now a firm fixture on the Summer Games program.
But there have been drawbacks. The PSS – like all technologies – is imperfect. It has also altered the way the game is played: With the power component removed, taekwondo has gone from knockout mode to point-scoring mode. This has resulted in a cleft between “old school” taekwondo – the powerhouse contact sport of the past – and “new school” taekwondo – the modern, tactical game, which prioritizes front foot kicks and favors tall, skinny players.
Even many exponents of “new school” saw they prefer “old school” techniques and fighters, who tend to be head-hunters and spin-kickers. But “new school” dominates the medal tables. Even elite exponents of “old school” taekwondo – who include some of the most crowd-pleasing fighters in the game, such as Moldova’s Aaron Cook and Turkey’s Servet Tazegul – find it hard to win with traditional fighting style in the current rules and gear.
This is not to say that Rio was dull: In fact, there were some classic finals – such as the Jordan’s Ahmad Abughaush versus Russia’s Alexey Denisenko and Great Britain’s Jade Jones vs. Spain’s Eva Calvo Gomez – and incredible crowd support. But with the 2016 Games over, a four-year window of opportunity has opened for the WTF to make changes and re-inject spectacle back into the game. The aim is for taekwondo at Tokyo 2020 to be not only fair and transparent, but also to dazzle and excite.
If that happens, it will open the way for taekwondo to be not just the hugely successful participation sport which it is – the WTF has 80 million members globally – but also a global spectator sport. Once crowds increase, global media will get into the action and elite fighters and teams will benefit from enriched sponsorship opportunities.
So, there is much at stake. The game-changing process gets underway when the WTF invites its top coaches and executives to a five-day brainstorm in Seoul on Oct. 17th.
“The Rio Olympics was a continuation of transparent and successful taekwondo competition from London 2012 and we need to prepare for the coming Tokyo 2020. In order to make a better sport, it is very important to hear opinions from you in order to make the best game,” said WTF President Chungwon Choue in the opening speech.
From Oct. 17th-21st the first-ever WTF Coach Seminar will take place, with 30 top coaches invited from around the world. “The coaches can ask questions of the WTF on the policy side – this is the first time we have given them a platform to speak for themselves,” said WTF Director General Jin-bang Yang. “The WTF expects more of these opportunities, so coaches will have more chance to influence policy – especially Competition Rules, championship management, and ranking and qualification policy.”
The coaching seminar will be one component of the WTF Coach Forum, which will take place at the same time and same location, with members of the WTF Technical Committee giving presentations and holding dialogs with the coaches. Changes will be discussed in four categories: competition rules; systems (such as rankings and qualification); image of the game (such as uniform designs and sport presentation); and PSS. “Those are the main areas of business,” said Yang. “Changes to rules and systems are things we can change in a short time, so we will concentrate on discussing these two. The other things will take more time.”
On Oct 20th, having exchanged ideas and elicited feedback from the coaches, the Technical Committee will present proposed changes to top-level WTF executives – the organization’s president, secretary general, director generals and Continental Union presidents. The ideas that both parties – the technical committee and the executive team– agree upon will be presented to the WTF General Assembly in Burnaby, Canada in November, on the sidelines of the World Taekwondo Junior Championships.
Those changes voted in will be applied at WTF championships from 2017. For more on how these important developments unfold – watch this space.
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I trust Japan will do Karate right. Who here remembers the scandal when Korea launched TKD?
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Karate Olympic debut shines light on martial art
SPORTS OCT. 25, 2016 - 02:30PM JST
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A karate competition takes place in Tokyo on August 22, 2016, to select Japanese representatives for the world championships in Linz, Austria
AFP
NAHA — Hollywood may have kicked karate onto the world stage, but its first-ever Olympic inclusion at the Tokyo 2020 Games promises to shine a light on the rich history of the discipline.
At 78, sensei Masahiro Nakamoto has been waiting decades for this decision, insisting there is far more to the martial art than the caricature depicted in films such as “The Karate Kid” and by action stars Chuck Norris and Jean-Claude Van Damme.
“This is the art of defence,” the karate master told AFP at his dojo in Naha, Okinawa—an island chain some 600 kilometers (375 miles) from the southern tip of mainland Japan.
“You don’t go just kicking and punching, you receive your opponent’s blow. Defending yourself translates into offence,” he added.
At the Tokyo Games, 80 competitors will take part in the Karate event. It joins surfing, skateboarding, climbing and baseball-softball as new sports included for the 2020 edition.
“The dreams of the world’s karate athletes came true when the (International Olympic Committee) made its decision,” said Japan Karate do Federation vice president Shigeo Kurihara.
“It’s an historic event—it was a day of joy for all of us.”
A blend of indigenous fighting styles, karate was born in Okinawa in the 15th century when the area was ruled by the independent Ryukyu Kingdom. Strong trading links meant the sport was also influenced by Chinese martial arts.
It is far older than the modern Olympics and today has at least 10 million registered practitioners worldwide, and yet it has struggled to make the case for inclusion in the Games.
By contrast, judo, a Japanese martial art, and Korea’s taekwondo are already permanent fixtures on the roster. Judo made its Olympic debut when Tokyo hosted the 1964 Games while taekwondo made its first appearance at the global event in 1988.
Integrating karate into the Olympics has been delayed by divisions in the movement around the world, with stalwarts long preferring to adhere to their interpretation rather than to work together to create an global art form.
“The variety of styles – more than 20 – complicated efforts to unify karate,” said Francis Didier, vice president of the World Karate Federation.
“It took a bit too long to modernise the rules of competition,” he admitted.
Sport karate, for example, calls for competition rules where opponents have to control their blows, while traditional karate allows for harder shots but requires significant protective gear, such as boxing gloves and helmets.
The martial art was only brought to Tokyo in the early 20th century when Gichin Funakoshi, regarded as the father of modern karate, moved from Naha.
“Okinawa was the place where karate’s spirituality developed,” explains Kurihara.
Frustrations remain however, that Okinawa’s role in the development of karate has been airbrushed out of history. For Nakamoto, the Olympic Games in four years time, is a chance to redress that.
“This is a great chance to show the world where karate has its roots. The world may be surprised to know that it was developed here,” he said, adding that it was inexorably linked to the island chain’s politics.
When the Ryukyu Kingdom ruled Okinawa for more than 400 years starting in the 15th century, brewers hired karate masters to protect shipments of indigenous rice-based liquor called Awamori, Nakamoto explained.
A vital tool of diplomacy at the time—keeping leaders on good terms with China and Japan.
“Brewers could sell their surplus so it was the jobs of karate masters to protect convoys from robbery,” Nakamoto said.
“In summer, they would rest outside and drink the spirits—so it became part of the skill, to defend ourselves from attack while drunk, or asleep.”
Karate expert and author Stephane Fauchard insists inclusion at the Tokyo 2020 Games will bring people to the sport.
“This is going to boost the sport’s visibility. The Games are a great showcase,” he told AFP.
Still, Fauchard doesn’t expect one big happy karate family.
He explained: “Sport karate will continue to develop in national federations while traditional karate will still be taught in schools. They’ll both benefit from the media attention brought by the Olympics and continue to exist side by side.”
Karate will still have to prove its credentials to retain an Olympic sport beyond 2020 however, the IOC will review whether its inclusion was a success.
Didier argues it’s clear why karate should remain in the games after 2020.
“Karate is relatively inexpensive, and athletes compete in the same arena as their judo and wrestling counterparts, and can be run over a few days.”
We're 4 years out and the news is already interesting.
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Japanese politician pushing to double price of cigarettes in Japan by start of 2020 Olympics
Casey Baseel 2 days ago
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Proposed tax hike aims to reduce the number of people lighting up before the Olympic flame comes to Tokyo.
Japan has a pretty intense mix of emotions about Tokyo serving as host of the 2020 Summer Olympics and Paralympics. On one hand, as a country that prides itself on hospitality and is always pleased to see people of other nations taking an interest in its traditions and accomplishments, many locals are excited about hosting the Games.
But on the other hand, the surge in visitors and attention from abroad that Japan will be experiencing has some worried about how certain social norms of the geographically, and at times socially, insular nation will be perceived by the international community. For example, Japanese smoking restrictions are much laxer than those in many similarly developed countries.
With Japanese public opinion also gradually becoming more critical of second-hand smoke, some legislators are arguing that now is as good a time as any to begin transitioning to stricter regulations and anti-smoking measures. The Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare is contemplating an indoor smoking ban that would prohibit lighting up in restaurants and bars, and now Akiko Santo, a member of the House of Councilors and the head of its Second-hand Smoke Prevention Committee, is pushing for another dramatic change.
On October 25, Santo formally suggested to Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga that the government look into the ramifications of significantly raising tobacco taxes, to the extent that a single pack of cigarettes would cost more than 1,000 yen (US$9.70). Should such a move be carried out, the retail price of an average pack would be more than double what it is now. While no official legislation has been introduced for debate, Santo seems determined to implement higher taxes on cigarettes by 2020, saying “The Olympics are coming up, and the timing is right.”
Source: Jiji
Top image ©RocketNews24
I think I'm going to enjoy watching this.Quote:
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GETTY IMAGES
24 AUG 2017
WELCOME TO THE WORLD OF KARATE
TWELVE MONTHS AFTER THE ANNOUNCEMENT WAS MADE INCLUDING KARATE IN THE PROGRAMME FOR THE TOKYO 2020 OLYMPIC GAMES, TOKEY HILL, THE 1980 KARATE WORLD CHAMPION AND CURRENT COACHING DIRECTOR AT THE USA KARATE FEDERATION, CAN BARELY BELIEVE HIS DREAM HAS COME TRUE.
“Just talking about it makes my skin tingle and the hairs go up at the back on my neck,” said Hill of karate’s debut at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020. “Every day I wake up to train athletes, I think to myself, ‘it really happened’. It’s unbelievable. Every day it is a blessing to wake up and say, ‘we are actually going to be there’.
“I tell my doctor, ‘Doc do me a favour man, keep me alive for three more years’.”
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IOC
Getting to this point has, as Hill acknowledges, been “a struggle” with “plenty of ups and down”. Karate has been dancing around the fringes of the Olympic movement for several decades, coming particularly close to securing a spot at the London 2012 Games. “Karate does not know the expression ‘giving up’,” Hill said, with a laugh.
The close calls did give the sport an opportunity to not only ensure its presentation was as clear as possible, but to also spread the sport’s message a little further each time. “Karate shares principles and ideas which have a positive impact on the world,” Hill said. “It instils the character-building blocks of confidence, self-esteem, the ability to deal with peer pressure, avoid drug problems.”
IT INSTILS THE CHARACTER-BUILDING BLOCKS OF CONFIDENCE, SELF-ESTEEM, THE ABILITY TO DEAL WITH PEER PRESSURE
Tokey Hill
Proponents of the sport, and there are none bigger than Hill, are also adamant that the full body skills on show plus the clear use of hands and feet in scoring points make karate one of the most spectator-friendly of all the martial arts.
The decision to include kata, the demonstrative side of the sport in which each athlete must complete a series of pre-determined movements is, according to Hill, indicative of karate’s self-confidence and maturity.
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IOC
“It is a beautiful part of the sport that I think has been overlooked and the WKF (World Karate Federation) has brought it to the forefront,” Hill said. Ten male and 10 female athletes will compete in kata in Tokyo, alongside 60 competitors in kumite, the more widely-known, one-on-one full contact discipline.
“When you watch kata you see the full mind and body connection, the full ying and yang. You see all the principals of martial arts,” said Hill. “You want to say it is beauty, it is grace, but when you see these people move, the power, the speed, the sharp technique, it is unbelievable.”
The hosts of the 2020 Games currently boast a particularly rich stream of kata talent, with Ryo Kiyuna and Kiyou Shimizu reigning world champions. This represents just one aspect of the undeniable synchronicity of karate making its Olympic bow in Japan.
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“Our first world championships was in Tokyo in 1970. To come full circle, Japan not only gets a lot of the credit for the sport but they have done a lot of work revolutionising what we are doing, as far as bringing karate to the forefront,” Hill said.
Not that the Japanese are expected to exert a stranglehold on the medals in three years’ time. Hill has seen, at first-hand, the burgeoning talent worldwide.
“Karate has grown all over the world. From being on the technical committee of the Americas and the WKF I have had a lot of exposure. Karate is no longer in pockets,” the coach of a number of USA athletes hoping to make the team for Tokyo, said.
“Colombia, for instance, had three or four people in recent finals, Brazil have current (world) champions, the USA has Tom Scott, number one in the world at -75kg.”
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Add on the significantly increased national investment that will come from governments across the globe as a result of karate’s rise to Olympic status, and Hill is certain that the smaller nations will challenge the traditional powerhouses.
As the USA’s first karate world champion – he won gold in the -80kg category in Madrid, Spain – Hill does have some personal experience of this phenomenon. He is hoping he will soon get to experience it vicariously. Hill’s daughter, Ashley, was recently lured back to karate by the prospect of competing at the 2020 Olympic Games.
“She had a great acting career, she was out of karate for four years but now she has made a commitment to come back because of the Olympics,” Hill explained.
Ashley, a two-time world championship medal winner and multiple USA national champion, had swapped the mat for a successful TV and film career, including a role alongside Arnold Schwarzenegger. Giving it all up to return to the rigour of full-time training was not easy, but indicated a passion for the sport of which her father is fiercely proud.
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“I’ll tell you how committed she is – she just got a job offer to shoot a segment for a movie, it was very lucrative for her and would have really helped her acting career, however she turned it down,” he said.
“I said to her it was her choice, ‘you figure out what you want to do but I can tell you this, you have to pick one or the other because you are not going to be able to commit 100% and that is what it is going to take to fulfil the criteria to make an Olympic team’.”
A spot on the USA Olympic team, let alone a medal in Tokyo, would, you suspect, be a dream fulfilled, not only for Ashley but also for her father. “The Olympics is the greatest event in the world as far as I am concerned,” Hill said.
Tokey Hill...now that's a name I haven't heard in a LOOONG time; not since he was a competitor back in the late '70s/early '80s.
Even though I feel that Olympics inclusion generally 'messes up' a MA, I strongly suspect that Olympic Karate will represent itself far, far better than Olympic TKD.
...because it's all about the original charm. :p
2020 Olympics & China National GamesQuote:
Aiming for tranquil transition
China Daily, August 31, 2017
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A wushu athlete competes at the Chinese National Games in Tianjin.
An official of wushu's governing body in China said the sport's inclusion in the Olympics is key to boosting its global profile, but is not the nation's ultimate aim.
"Despite the failure of wushu, or Chinese martial arts, to be included in the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games, the bidding efforts have significantly boosted the development of the sport around the globe," Zhang Yuping, deputy head of the Chinese Wushu Administrative Center of the State General Administration of Sport, said on Tuesday.
The number of member countries and regions in the International Wushu Federation has increased from 116 to 149 since 2008, and the sport has been included in many continental and multi-discipline events, she said.
Wushu has been an official competition event at the Asian Games and was a demonstration event at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and the 2014 Nanjing Youth Olympics.
"The ever-increasing global profile of wushu is closely related with the efforts to bid for the sport's inclusion as an Olympic sport. And we will continue to push for the inclusion," said Zhang, a former national wushu champion.
Lai Xiaoxiao, a 24-year-old taking part in wushu at the 13th National Games in Tianjin, said adding wushu to the Olympics would help introduce it to more people.
"I think many people only know wushu as a form of performance, but do not understand the meaning behind the movements. More people will have the chance to see wushu if it is included in the Olympic Games," Lai said.
But that's not the primary aim of the sport's governing body, said Zhang.
"Our goal is to promote traditional Chinese culture to the world and give the world a sport from China," she said.
There are around 60 million practitioners of all ages in the country, according to Zhang.
In recent years, China has sent coaches to foreign countries and cooperated with the Confucius Institute worldwide to develop training courses for overseas practitioners, while the country's governing body for the sport has adopted standardized movements and scoring systems.
Zhang said the standardization of wushu, while being beneficial to its promotion, does not compromise its original charm.
"Wushu has retained its distinctive features in its transformation from traditional martial arts to a competitive sport," Zhang said.
"For instance, in the routine competition (performance of movements or weapon skills), every move has its distinctive meaning derived from attack or defense in real combat. This separates it from other sports like gymnastics," she said.
From transformation, wushu has evolved into taolu-routine performances of movements or weapon skills-and sanda, a combat sport combining punching, kicking and wrestling.
Lin Jianhua, a referee at the National Games, said it's time for wushu to become a Olympic sport because its increasingly sophisticated evaluation system has been accepted globally.
Lin said the rules used in domestic competitions have been gradually aligned with international standards in recent years, which paves way for the promotion of wushu in the world.
"Through the standardization, wushu is rendered in a more graceful and elevated manner," said Dong Guoxing, a wushu coach from Henan province.
"And the competition is staged in a more fair and open way."
If only Sumo would become an Olympic event. I'd watch that.Quote:
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Yokozuna Hakuho (left) and Kisenosato perform the rare sandan-gamae ritual at the Beyond 2020 Basho on Wednesday at Ryogoku Kokugikan. | KYODO
SUMO
Sumo pulls out all the stops at promotional event
BY MAI YOSHIKAWA
KYODO
OCT 4, 2017
Rikishi in Japan are coming up big — literally and figuratively — doing little things to promote the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games and, though not part of the Olympic program, the ancient national sport of sumo.
On Wednesday, 70 wrestlers of sumo’s top two divisions, including all four yokozuna, took part in the Ozumo Beyond 2020 Basho, a government-funded project aimed at both first-time spectators and hardcore fans. It was the second straight year for the event at Ryogoku Kokugikan
Wrestlers clad in colorful kimono stood outside the Tokyo venue and delighted the 4,000 fans by greeting them with handshakes, hugs, autograph signings and selfies.
The invitation-only event featured various services such as English public address announcements and subtitled live video streaming as well as wheelchair and guide dog accessibility. The unique experience took guests away from the present moment, allowing them to temporarily forget the injury concerns surrounding sumo’s top makuuchi division that have been giving the Japan Sumo Association a headache.
The dohyo ring was a stage where children in mawashi belts tackled wrestlers and lower-ranked wrestlers took turns singing lively sumo songs.
Last year, when the JSA organized the event for the first time, the sandan-gamae ceremony was performed by two yokozuna for the first time in 21 years. This year, Hakuho and Kisenosato were given the rare privilege of demonstrating the three-posture ritual.
After taking part in his first sandan-gamae, held only on special occasions, Mongolian yokozuna Hakuho said he enjoyed the kind of adrenaline rush he had never felt before.
“It was my first time (to perform the sandan-gamae) and I was nervous but it was a good experience,” said Hakuho, who was a last-minute entry. “The Olympics coming to Tokyo again is already a big deal, and it couldn’t have happened at a better time. I’m glad I was born the year I was. I hope to remain active until 2020,” said Hakuho, whose father won Mongolia’s first-ever Olympic medal as a freestyle wrestler in 1968 and also competed in the 1964 Tokyo Games.
Meanwhile, his counterpart Kisenosato said he remembers seeing the ritual in photographs years ago and was happy to officially become a part of that tradition.
“What an honor,” said Kisenosato.
“There were fans from all generations and it’s nice to share sumo tradition with them. Of course there’s the basho, but getting a chance to watch things like the sandan-gamae is different. I hope this gets more people interested in sumo.”
The one-day event was being held as a trial project by the government as the country makes every effort to attract more foreign visitors and make an economic success of the 2020 Games.
In addition to ringside seating for wheelchair users, live English play-by-play commentary and sign language interpretation were available to demonstrate how sports can break down barriers.
JSA public relations chief Kiyotaka Kasugano, who spoke on the raised ring before the national anthem was performed by a singer with autism, expressed his joy at seeing so many local foreign residents unite through sumo, and for the opportunity to share Japan’s culture and traditions with the world.
“Through sumo we believe we can promote this country’s other fine cultures and continue that trend onto the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics,” he said.