What is the status of Billiards as an Olympic Sport? This has been a question on everyone’s mind this year, and in years past whenever the Olympic games are occurring.
Billiards as an Olympic Sport
Billiards as an Olympic sport is something that billiard enthusiasts have long wanted to see, and many are searching for it via the internet this year. Well, we hate to disappoint, but it isn’t part of the 2008 Olympic Games, but we’re a lot closer than we were before. In fact, Cue Sports are already included in the Asian Games, SEA Games, Mediterranean Games.
Ever since in the 1950’s many attempts have been made in order for Billiards to possibly achieve the Olympic Recognition, but all of them to no avail. Two major obstacles were standing in the way; Billiards did not comply with the definition of Sports that was valid at this point in time, and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) demanded a possible recognition one organization in charge of all Billiards Sports. You can imagine how difficult this task would be, given that Billiards, Carom, Pool, and Snooker did share the origin of Billiards, but have developed separately from each other ever since in the middle of the 19th century.
Today’s reality, however, is that for Billiards at the Olympic level, the World Confederation of Billiard Sports (WCBS) now represent all games under the cue sports umbrella that are being pushed for inclusion in the Olympics. In 1998, billiards was recognized by the IOC as an “international sports federation”. Experts say, and agree, that this is the first step to getting billiards in the Olympic games. This organization is now campaigning for inclusion in either the 2012 Olympics, having been unsuccessful with getting cue sports into the 2008 Olympic Games.
In July 1996 the IOC decided to grant the WCBS a provisional recognition for two years. That was the first step. Then, another glimmer of hope came in 1998 when in a press conference, the IOC President stated that “the IOC is anxious to include Billiards Sports in the Olympic Games as quickly as possible, but the WCBS will have to decide which discipline it would like to include.”
The World Confederation of Billiards Sports actually has a page on the IOC website, as a registered International Sports Federation. The WCBS submitted an application for billiards participation in the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games in May of 2001 but were rejected in August 2002. The reason the IOC provided to the WCBS in 2002 to justify their denial of billiards into the 2008 Olympic games was that there had been a previous decision not to take on any additional sports for the Beijing Olympics.
At the previous summer games, the IOC advertised a new regulation, however, which says that the IOC will scrutinize all current and aspiring sports for inclusion using the same strict guidelines. This may just be the chance Billiards needs to get into the Olympics. Unfortunately, the IOC has a 28-sport, 300 event, 10,500 athlete limit.
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