Paris Olympics 2024. (AP)
A total of four sporting disciplines will debut at the Paris Olympics but cricket is not part of the roster. However, cricket will be brought back in the next edition of the Summer Olympics in 2028.
Cricket fans will need to wait for four years more to witness the return of the event at the Summer Olympics. The upcoming edition of the showpiece event will take place in Paris from July 26 to August 11. A total of four sporting disciplines will debut at the Paris Olympics but cricket is not part of the roster. The game of cricket was introduced to the Olympics in the second edition, which was held in the French capital in 1900. Only two teams competed in that event back then and the British team won the gold medal by beating France.
Cricket will be brought back in the next edition of the Summer Olympics in 2028. The decision was made at the 141st IOC session in Mumbai last year. The committee decided that six cricket teams would feature at the next Olympics scheduled to be held in Los Angeles and the tournament will be played in the T20 format. Apart from cricket, five other sports– Baseball, softball, flag football, lacrosse and squash will be introduced at the Los Angeles Olympics.
The proposal from the Organising Committee of the Olympic Games Los Angeles 2028 (@LA28) to include five new sports in the programme has been accepted by the IOC Session.Baseball/softball, cricket (T20), flag football, lacrosse (sixes) and squash will be in the programme at…
— IOC MEDIA (@iocmedia) October 16, 2023
Following cricket’s inclusion in the 2028 Olympics, IOC President Thomas Bach said, “The Olympic Games will give cricket a global stage and the opportunity to grow besides the traditional cricket countries and regions. For the Olympic movement, it’s an opportunity to engage with new athletes and fan communities.”
“Not just in India but across the world, we see growing popularity of cricket and, in particular, the T20 format. Now the World Cup is a huge success already so we are looking forward to welcoming the world’s best players in cricket to perform in the US in 2028,” he added.
The popularity of cricket has been growing rapidly in the USA since the introduction of Major League Cricket (MLC). The country had the privilege to co-host the T20 World Cup earlier this year. The IOC hopes more Americans will gain interest in cricket when the sport will be played at the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028.
The Indian cricket team had achieved a historic feat becoming champions on their first attempt at the Asian Games last year
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