There's definitely a few "sports" that I question for sure, but I don't think you can question any of the events that were competed in during the original olympiad (javelin, etc).

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I know I'm promiscuous, but in a classy way

Does anyone remember when the triple jump was called the "hop,skip and jump"? Good thinking on renaming that one.

Even as a kid I thought "hop,skip and jump" sounded silly.

Javelin, discus, and hammer are all traditional track and field (actually, the rest of the world puts all the events together and calls them "athletics") events.

Archery and fencing are part of modern pentathlon, and are considered part of the military arts, and have been included for MANY decades.

Rhythmic dancing? Uh...

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Certainly there are some sports that I could see getting the boot (race walking, rhythmic gymnastics, synchronized swimming), but discus and shot put? Are you kidding?? Both are very big here. Actually, I think all the sports you mentioned should stay, but I could certainly see some others go.

At least those sports can be measured by quantitatively. those athletes can strive throw farther or something. I have a problem with events like synchro swimming or trampoline. thats a skill not a sport. a tough skill. Im not saying that what they do is easy, but I dont think those skills belong in the Olympics (and that includes figure skating).

Why do you care?

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customerjon @gmail.com is where information happens.

   
You really need to travel more and see these sports from outside the US.

Every event you called out is a sport and is a difficult sport to master. I'm sure that you have offended many people.

If you are basing your "worthiness" to be in the Olympics on popularity of the sport, triathlon would be out in a heartbeat. There's probably more people that participate and/or would watch many of the sports you listed over triathlon. One thing I've learned by hanging out with people that are "into" all kinds of different sports and hobbies: each one of them takes it very seriously and there's an entire sub-culture they participate in that totally "gets" why they think it is exciting. Don't be so quick to dismiss other things that may not make sense to you . . . there's a whole lotta people out there that think it makes perfect sense.

Part of the Olympic tradition is showcasing sports that don't have huge popular followings already. Curling? Bobsled? Skeleton? Water Polo? Slalom Kayaking? How popular is popular enough for you?

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Slowguy

(insert pithy phrase here...)

wow, you surely are expressing the North American point of view, maybe you need to realize that the rest of the world might see things differently? after all the Olympics are a WORLD event, although if you watch the (super partisan, if there are no American athletes who cares, we're not showing it or if we do we'll cut coverage arbitrarily at random times to broadcast 'human interest' stories on other American athletes) American TV coverage you might not realize that.

Archery: hugely popular in various Asian countries (Korea and China for example, and also Japan)
Handball and Fencing: hugely popular in several European countries (Italy for example, especially in regards to fencing, but handball also, as well as water polo)
Hammer Throw/Javelin/Discus Throw/Shot Put: very popular in several European countries also (esp. Eastern European ones as far as I know)

I would like to see you argue that any of these are 'not sports', given the talent and training that it takes to excel in any of them. I also sure hope that for a change this time there will be more broadcasting of these sports besides the usual swimming/track&field/gymnastics galore.

Throw out baseball too, hit a ball with a stick, come on.

I would love to see rugby back in the mix. It is truly a world sport and should be back in there

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Hello YaHey and All,

When I was a kid I thought some of these should be included:

Mumbly Peg, Marbles, Jacks, Jump Rope, Rope Climbing, Dodge Ball, Hatchet Throwing, Knife Throwing, Fist Fighting on a Floating Log, Speed climbing a 90 foot Tree, High Speed Chain Saw Logging.

http://www.olympic.org/..._uk.asp?SportCode=AQ

Excerpts:

The Olympic Games competitions prior to FINA had included a variety of unusual events such as underwater swimming (1900), 200m obstacle swimming (1900) and plunge for distance (1904). Prior to the London Olympics, where a 100m pool was used, the ocean (1896), the River Seine (1900), and a little lake in St. Louis, USA (1904), had been used as Olympic sites.

In order to unify the rules and create a forum for international meetings, the leaders of the eight attending countries (Germany, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Great Britain, Hungary and Sweden) met on 19 July 1908 at the Manchester Hotel, London, on the occasion of the Games of the IV Olympiad, and resolved to form a world-wide swimming association.

SPORTS ON THE OLYMPIC PROGRAMME

Discover the sports and disciplines on the programme of the next Olympic Games.



Volleyball
Olympic sport
since 1964 Summer sports: Aquatics Archery Athletics Badminton Baseball Basketball Boxing Canoe / kayak Cycling Equestrian Fencing Football Gymnastics Handball Hockey Judo Modern pentathlon Rowing
Sailing Shooting Softball Table tennis Taekwondo Tennis Triathlon Volleyball Weightlifting Wrestling Winter sports: Biathlon Bobsleigh Curling Ice Hockey Luge Skating Skiing
RECOGNISED SPORTS LIST

Air sports Orienteering Bandy Pelote Basque Billiard Sports Polo Boules Powerboating Bowling Racquetball Bridge Roller Sports Chess Rugby Cricket Sport climbing DanceSport Squash Golf Surfing Karate Sumo Korfball Tug of War Life Saving Underwater Sports Motorcycle Racing Water Skiing Mountaineering and Climbing Wushu Netball

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Cheers, Neal

+1 mph Faster

Guess everybody has their pet peeves about what should or should not be in the Olympics. Golf and bodybuilding have been trying unsuccessfully to get in for years. I could see golf as an olympic sport but definately not bodybuilding. Look at some of the goofy sports that have been added recently - beach volleyball and some of the winter snowboard hot dogging sports?

I can tell you from personal experience that fencing is a SPORT that requires amazing speed, agility and lighting reflexes. Just because it is not popular in America (i.e. Soccer ) doesn't defer it to non-sport status. Hammer Throw, Javelin, Discus Throw, Shot Put?? Seriously? Those are staple track and field event that go back to roman times.

Have you ever tried to race walk? Those guys are crazy! They're race walking faster than most of us can dream to run.

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I know I'm promiscuous, but in a classy way

Part of the Olympic tradition is showcasing sports that don't have huge popular followings already. . . . Water Polo?

Hey now! Step away from the Water Polo! Huge in europe and much bigger in the US than ever before, particularly with the addition of the womens.

(sorta protective of that particular ox;-))

Curling is idiotic and should not be in the Olympics. That is not a sport. Maybe it's a skill, but any sport that requires beer drinking at the end of participation should not be in the Olympics. Should Darts, Pool, Fishing, Hunting be in the Olympics?

in order for a sport to be in the olympics in the first place, it needs to be played and represented by a certain number of countries. So any sport that's in the olympics is a well-played sport. Maybe not in the USA, but keep in mind we only make up 1 of about 200 countries in the world.

Uh oh! Prepare for the wrath of Jonnyo!

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Walking is by Far the most fundamental physical activity.even if you are a great runner I cannot believe you would not be impressed by a 1.17 20 km walk or a 3.35 FIFTY km walk. these are current records.Maybe you should stick to something you actually know.

Just because its not popular in your country, it doesn't mean that they are not popular elsewhere. An example is handball, which is HUGE in Europe or archery, which is really big in the Asian countries.
Someone else mentioned Diving was not a sport... that it was a skill.... Id like to see you go through 6 months of dive training and then hear what you think of wether its a sport or not.

Archery is SUPER huge in Wisconsin and MN area...yeah...all they need is some booze, a snowmobile and some camoflage wallets....

Please...would you be considered a cheat if you gave your competitor some coffee? God forbid he has the shakes...

Wait, if freaking BOWLING an olympic "sport"? I sure as hell hope not.

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