Discontinued Olympic Sports
Events > Olympics > Discontinued > Resources > Rules for Acceptance
Acceptance of a sport into the Olympic Games Program
The rules for acceptance into the Olympic Games program has changed over the year. Here is a brief summary of the current regulations.
For a sport to be included in the Olympic Games, the sport must first be recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) under the conditions that it has an International Federation (IF), and that this Federation has held a World Championship competition.
The sport may then be included initially as a demonstration sport, and the sport's International Federation may make an application to the IOC for consideration as an Olympic Sport. This application process must take place a minimum of six years before a scheduled Olympic Games.
In Atlanta, only one new sport was added to the program - women's softball, however, there were three new disciplines introduced - women's soccer, mountain bike racing and beach volleyball.
Related Pages
- more about Discontinued Olympic Sports
