Past Sports of the Olympics
There are currently 33 sports at the Tokyo Olympic Games, though the number has changed over time. It is surprising the large number and variety of sports and events that have at one time been officially part of the Olympic Games. There are also many sports that have been demonstration sports, and some of these have made it onto the official program.
Discontinued Sports
Since the first modern Olympic Games in 1896, as many as ten sports have disappeared completely from the schedule, such as croquet, cricket, jeu de paume, pelota, polo, roque, rackets, tug-of-war, lacrosse, and motor boating. The Winter Olympics also has a few sports and events that have been discontinued.
The most recent sports to become discontinued are baseball and softball which were dropped from the 2012 Games (but are back again for Tokyo 2020). This was the first time in 69 years that a sport itself had been removed from the Olympic program, with the previously dropped sport polo removed in 1936.
Latest Pages Added
- Canoe Marathon [Sep '21]
- Imperial Distance Olympic Track & Field Events [Aug '19]
- 60 m sprint [Aug '19]
- 200 m Hurdles [Aug '19]
- Figure Skating [June '16]
- Ice Hockey [June '16]
- Side Horse Vault [June '16]
- Gymnastics on Horseback [May '16]
- Folding Kayak [May '16]
- All-Round athletics event [May '16]
Discontinued Events
As well as sports themselves being dropped from the Olympics, there are many more events or sporting disciplines that have been removed from sports that are still on the program, such as the swimming events of plunge for distance and underwater swimming, the track and field events of the standing highjump and tug-of-war, and the shooting events of running deer and dueling pistol.
There are many more, you can have a look at the complete list of all discontinued sports, or my list of some the more unusual sports.
Related Pages
- See also the section on Olympic Games demonstration sports.
- Discontinued multi-sport events
- If you are searching for more information, see the Resources section or try these Books on Olympic History.
- For information about sports currently on the Olympic program, see the Olympic Games Summer Sports and Winter Sports pages.
- Try our Discontinued Olympic Events Quiz as part of the Olympic Games Quiz Questions.
- Discontinued Sporting Events — major events that are no longer held.
- Read about other major World Sporting Events.
- Read the Olympics entries on the sporting blog.
- Olympic symbols and images in the clipart section.
- Videos of Olympic Games Discontinued Sports and Demonstration Sports.
- Unusual Sports and New Sports
- Olympic Games fun
Any comments, suggestions or corrections? Please let us know.