Olympic sports program review

[De_Gambassi 1,276]

So, while Paris is still fresh on our minds, what are your main thoughts about the olympic sports program ?

 

I'll start :

 

• That's my biggest takeaway : I've missed so, so, much of the good stuff. There are too many events cramped in a 17 days period, specially during the first week. IMO, we are either moving to a three weeks period to help spreading the sports, or we should move back to a ~300 events olympics like in the 2000's

 

• They definitely should drop the 4*400 mixed relay while it was a nice event by itself, if some of the best athletes don't compete, scrap it. 

 

• Race walking could (should ?) be dropped tomorrow and be replaced by cross country running and not many will miss it

 

• While I always have been a massive "cut the swimming events by half" enthusiast, I've been pleasantly surprised by the variety of podiums between the 100/200m distances (And yes, ofc, Léon Marchand helps me having another view on the matter ). I'd still cut a couple of the relays at least.

 

• Diving is relaxing, but it's a really a small sport. Not sure we really need to double up chinese golds with all 4 synchro events though. High diving must be considered at some point.

 

• Open Water swimming need more events, I'd like to move the 1500m to open water and probably add a relay

 

• I've been surprised by the pentathlon event. The huge crowd and the setting helped a lot to vindicate the sport. Unfortunately, I think dropping the equestrian will hurt the sport a lot. As it stand, the sport does kind of make sense (it helps if you're a french aristocrat from the 19th century, but still). With obstacle running coming up, I have a feeling we will see a random collection of five sports with no coherence at all. Equestrian might have been the last saving grace of the sport.

 

• Like OW swimming, I don't like sports (and venues) to be limited to two events. It seems a bit of waste. For instance, I'd like MTB cycling to add a relay (why not already, really ?) and downhill to be considered. Same with Golf where a team event is badly needed.

 

• The Versailles cross-country venue was amazing ! I'd love for the cross country to have its standalone event on top of the evening stuff.

 

• We need the three events in sports climbing ASAP. A mixed team combined event could work also.

 

• Boxing needs to stay.

 

• I'd prefer to have a male and a female double and a mixed team event in table tennis that what we have now. Same in tennis, if the players were up for it, i'd like a mixed team event to remplace the mixed double.

 

• Kayak "Jeux Sans Frontières" events were ok I guess. I think 6 slalom and 10 sprint events is a nice balance for the sport, not sure, if these cross things are the way to go.

 

• I'd prefer rowing to keep its "basketball for short people" events than the beach stuff they are planing for LA

 

• Why Trampoline and not Trumbling, really ?

 

• I kind of like to see more 'open' events, as in open to both women and men and let the best win regardless of sex. For instance, I'd gladly switch the mixed team event in archery for an open individual event with every archers (male and female) competing against each others.

 

• Leaving aside the breaking stuff (which was not that terrible really), I have the feeling the "X" stuff is making is way into the olympics (or it might be the other way, not sure)

 

• We should have an small optional list of sports (not quite the additional sports program we have now) for sports that make sense in some context, but doesn't in others. Sports that can live beeing olympic or not without much fuss. Here, I'm thinking mainly about baseball, cricket and surfing. While Surfing in Tahiti made sense, like it will in Los Angeles and Australia, will it for India 2036 or Germany 2040 ?

 

• I'd bring back the demonstration sports of the old days for stuff like Lacrosse or Pétanque

 

• If Taekwondo is in, Karate should be in also. And squash too. These two are my two borderline olympic sports that should be in. In any case, these two sports can't have their olympic status to be challenged every four years, too much depends on it. And so, to answer my first point : we definitely need a three weeks period.

[vovanA 210]

I don't think any events should be ever removed or changed with other, the programme should stay the same with adding new events. it's weird to be one and only karate or breaking champion just because you were born in the right decade. I'd prefer moving to a longer Olympics or cutting the number of participants to shorten the events but not to deleting them completely

[George_D 1,474]

Judo TKD, Karate too many asian martial sports

 

Table tennis, Badminton, Squash too many racquet sports

[Olympicsnell 332]

Mountain Bike is my main one, Put the short course event in! Same riders, same course, it's a no brainer. 

Agree about 4x400 Mixed, if its who has the best B team then just keep it at the world Championships.

I don't like the 3 week idea, part of the appeal for me IS that there is too much going to watch everything at the same time, everyone's games experience is different. But i do agree that week 2 seemed slightly emptier than week 1 in Paris. I think the range of sports in Paris was almost perfect, i actually think there is TOO many sports in LA...but t20 cricket should be in, but with 8-12 teams.

Gutted about the Modern Pentathlon changes, even before GB got good at it i enjoyed watching it, I'd rather not see it in the games than see it with a joke event slapped in the middle. I am also 50/50 on boxing, it can stay or go....not to fussed really. 

I get why football is in, but....again you could cut it and i wouldn't care, being a under23 tournament is just weird

[De_Gambassi 1,276]

37 minutes ago, George_D said:

Judo TKD, Karate too many asian martial sports

 

Table tennis, Badminton, Squash too many racquet sports

Well, with all of these sport combined, you barely have more events that swimming.

[heywoodu 16,146]

1 hour ago, vovanA said:

I don't think any events should be ever removed or changed with other, the programme should stay the same with adding new events. it's weird to be one and only karate or breaking champion just because you were born in the right decade. I'd prefer moving to a longer Olympics or cutting the number of participants to shorten the events but not to deleting them completely

But it'd be weirder if a sport, once added, can never be removed again just for the sake of not removing it. Number of participants in so many events is already ridiculously small, from a handful of weightlifters and barely half of a regular cycling peloton to eight (!) teams in synchro diving.

 

 

[heywoodu 16,146]

As always, most of the suggestions I see make me think "wtf, no", but also I'm not creative enough to come up with lots of realistic suggestions myself  

 

I would love for football to be kicked out though. It takes up so many spots and especially the junior men's event is just ridiculous (as an Olympic event).

 

As for mountain bike: please no shorttrack, those races are the epitome of 'it must be short and spectacular', resulting in usually nothing happening at all until the last 2 minutes. It's not done on the same course, it's done on a short course (hence the name) of which most of the mountain bike elements have been taken out to increase the speed. Yes to downhill though, absolutely, that would actually add something.

[intoronto 6,615]

A more detailed write may come later but I'd drop at least one team sport and redistribute those quotas to individual sports.

[Jur 689]

- I would love for a Mountain Running event in the Mountain Bike course.

- Freestyle 1500m series are long and boring. I would remove the event and change it to a Open Waters short event, even maybe a relay? 4x200 should be a direct final with the best 8 teams.

 

- Mixed duet in Artistic Swimming should be in LA. And also Men's Rhytmic Gymnastics is so needed. Same for Women's Grecorroman. If sports can't have parity can't be in the olympics, that's my take.

 

- I wouldn't be mad if they changed Boxing for Kickboxing.

 

- Cricket and Baseball/Softball should be a 10 team tournament at least, and part of the core programme in the Olympics.

 

- Karate was the most boring event in Tokyo, is good out of the Olympic Programme. If another contact sport is wanted, Wushu is the correct option.

 

- I don't mind each host selecting some events, but to an extent. Maybe just events, and not whole sports? IDK. I live with fear of Brisbane choosing Netball and that weird version of Rugby only them play.

 

- Men's football should be down to 12 teams.

 

- I want that Sailing Off-Shore event they wanted for Paris back. Find a way to work around it, but it sounded amazing.

 

- I'm okay with Ligthweight-Rowing dissapearing. But they shound change it for Coastal Rowing instead.

 

- I want a long distance Canoe/Kayak event.

 

- 4x400 mixed in Athletics doesnt work. I would rather it change for a Medley Distance Relay or something among the lines. Also, Women's 400 Hurdles need higher hurdles, they are to low and it isnt a challenge for athletes anymore. It's just basically 400m 2.0.

 

- Out with Equestrian. It's 2024, no need to put animals through it. And why is the best event (cross country race) not an individual event?

 

 

That's all that I can think about.

 

 

Edited August 14, 2024 by Jur

[Orangehair43 285]

51 minutes ago, heywoodu said:

But it'd be weirder if a sport, once added, can never be removed again just for the sake of not removing it. Number of participants in so many events is already ridiculously small, from a handful of weightlifters and barely half of a regular cycling peloton to eight (!) teams in synchro diving.

 

 

Eight teams in Synchro diving has been the case since they came in for Sydney so not a victim of recent cuts or anything.