Cricket is reportedly set to become an Olympic sport for the second time at the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.
According to The Times, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) executive board will deliberate today on what new sports to bring into LA28.
The report claims men’s and women’s T20 will make the cut, and cricket will again become an Olympic sport for just the second time sinceafter the 1900 Paris Games.
IOC president Thomas Bach is all for bringing cricket into the Olympics given the sport’s mass appeal in countries such as India, Bangladesh and Pakistan.
The three nations aren’t exactly Olympic powerhouses but cricket would no doubt attract even more eyeballs to the tournament in 2028.
However, the LA28 organisers will allow the addition of cricket only if flag football, a non-contact version of American football, is also added.
The number of sports at the Olympics has seen a rapid growth in recent times.
At the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro, 38 sports were played as golf became the most recent inclusion.
The number jumped to 46 at the Tokyo Games with the addition of 3x3 basketball, BMX, karate, rugby sevens, baseball, softball, skateboarding, surfing and speed climbing.
There will be 45 sports at the Paris Games next year with baseball/softball and karate removed in favour of breakdancing.
T20 cricket was put through some sort of test run at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham with an eight-team women’s tournament. Australia took gold with a nine-run victory over India, while New Zealand won bronze after beating England by eight wickets.
Indo-Asian News Service
