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Wrestling still in

By on February 20, 2013

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Despite last week’s recommendation from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) that wrestling will not be on the program of the 2020 Olympic Games, the Federation of Gay Games (FGG) has moved to ensure competitors taking part in the 2014 Gay Games that the sport will remain.

FGG sport officer Sébastien Datiche expressed surprise at the IOC decision.

“Wrestling has been a significant event at every edition of the Olympics, both ancient and modern,” he said.

“This is also true for the Gay Games, where wrestling has been on the program every four years since the very first Games in 1982.

“The elimination of wrestling from the Olympics is a blow to a great tradition and an outstanding sport.”

8258237781_094d233eed_o articleWrestling was part of the first modern Olympics in 1896, as well as the ancient Games in Olympia.

“FILA was greatly astonished by [the] recommendation of the IOC Executive Board not to maintain wrestling among the 25 core sports for the 2020 Olympic Games,” the international wrestling federation said in a statement about the IOC decision last week.

“With wrestling being the national sport in a fair amount of them and the only possibility for athletes to represent their country at the Olympic Games, thus contributing to their universality.

“FILA will take all necessary measures to convince the IOC… of the aberration of such a decision against one of the founding sports of the ancient and modern Olympic Games.”

Wrestling will now join seven other candidate sports battling for one spot in a revamped program, Reuters reports.

A reprieve is thought unlikely however.

“This is not the end of the process, this is purely a recommendation,” IOC spokesman Mark Adams told reporters following the board decision.

“It is the session which is sovereign.”

The ninth quadrennial Gay Games will be held in Ohio, USA, August 9-16, 2014.

INFO: www.gg9cle.com

 

 

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