Far-fetched Olympic dream
THE CLAMOR for certain sports to get entry, recognition and inclusion to the summer Olympic Games has been an agenda of the different sports organizations and the country that are pushing and supporting it.
This outcry from the different sports organizations transcends to the small groups that dreams for their sports to finally be played in the Olympics.
But how does a sport get chosen for the Olympics? Here is an excerpt from Encyclopedia Britannica that briefly explains the procedure:
The first step in the process of becoming an Olympic sport is recognition as a sport from the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The IOC requires that the activity have administration by an international non-governmental organization that oversees at least one sport then moves to International Sports Federation (IF) status, the international organization administering the sport must enforce the Olympic Movement AntiDoping Code, including conducting effective outof-competition tests on the sport’s competitors while maintaining rules set forth by the Olympic Charter.
A sport may gain IOC recognition but not become a competing event at the Olympic Games. To become a part of the Games, the sport’s IF must apply for admittance by filing a petition establishing its criteria of eligibility to the IOC. The IOC may then admit an activity into the Olympic program in one of three different ways: as a sport; as a discipline, which is a branch of a sport; or as an event, which is a competition within a discipline. Rules for admittance vary slightly between a new sport, a discipline, and an event, but the intent is the same.
Once an IF has presented its petition, many rules and regulations control whether the sport will become part of the Olympic Games. The Olympic Charter indicates that in order to be accepted, a sport must be widely practiced by men in at least 75 countries and on four continents and by women in no fewer than 40 countries and on three continents. The sport must also increase the ‘‘value and appeal’’ of the Olympic Games and retain and reflect its modern traditions. There are numerous other rules, including bans on purely ‘‘mind sports’’ and sports dependent on mechanical propulsion.
In recent years the IOC has worked to manage the scope of the Olympics by permitting new sports only in conjunction with the simultaneous discontinuation of others. Sports that have already been part of the Games are periodically reviewed to determine whether they should be retained. The Olympic Programme Commission notes that problems have arisen when trying to find venues to accommodate some sports’ specific needs. When choosing sports to include in the program, the IOC must take into consideration media and public interest, since these are a key drive behind the Olympic Games, but must simultaneously manage costs.
The Philippines pride arnis is going through this stage and is very much struggling at home to at least pass the necessary provisions to elevate it to the next level.
The lack of unity, the ignorance of safety and the continuous aim to dethrone those who leads even without any effort of supporting them for the sake of the mutual interest of the art and the sports is hindering our Philippine National Sports, arnis in getting into the level it deserves, the sad reality even is that those who are greatly affected are the athletes who are merely pawns manipulated by politicking personalities thriving in sports.