Eight sports made the shortlist of potential additions to the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics program, including America’s pastime and one of Japan’s most popular sports - baseball. Bowling, karate, squash and roller sports also make the shortlist.
The Tokyo 2020 Organising Committee unveiled the shortlist this morning. The full list of sports remaining up for consideration are baseball/softball, bowling, karate, roller sports, sport climbing, squash, surfing and wushu, which is a Chinese martial art.
Earlier this month, 26 sports submitted applications, notes SI.com. The sports that didn’t make the cut include American football (sorry NFL), bridge, chess, floorball, korfball, sumo, waterski, wakeboard, dance sport and air sports.
The international federations that represent each of the eight finalists will make their presentations for Tokyo organizers next month and then have to make another presentation before the International Olympic Committee in September. However, we won’t know which of the sports will make it until August 2016, just before the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
Baseball and softball were once Olympic sports, but haven’t been played since the 2008 games in Beijing. Considering the popularity of the game in Japan, it’s not surprising that it could make a comeback.