Tokyo "has shortlisted baseball, softball and karate among nine additional candidate events for the 2020 Olympics in Japan’s capital," according to Isabel Reynolds of BLOOMBERG. Bowling, roller sports, climbing, squash, surfing and wushu "were also listed" Monday by the Tokyo 2020 Additional Event Programme Panel. Twenty-six int'l sports federations "applied for inclusion, with the likes of tug-of-war, chess, bridge and sumo missing out." Shortlisted events "will be required to provide more information" before Tokyo 2020 submits its final proposal to the IOC by the end of September. The IOC’s verdict "will come in 2016." Additional events "can offer host countries an opportunity to include sports in which they are particularly strong." Panel Chair Fujio Mitarai said among the criteria for selection were "how much excitement they can create among the Japanese people in line with the Tokyo 2020 vision." He said that transparency and fairness "were also taken into consideration" (BLOOMBERG, 6/22). The AP reported under the Olympic Agenda 2020 reforms approved in December, the IOC agreed to abolish the cap of 28 sports for the summer Games and move to an "events-based" system that would allow new competitions to come in, while keeping to about 10,500 athletes and 310 medal events. Host cities "are allowed to propose the inclusion of one or more additional events for their Games." Baseball and softball "were dropped after the 2008 Games in Beijing and have failed in several bids for reinstatement." They "would be a huge draw in Japan," even without the participation of players from MLB, which has said that it will not "alter its schedule to accommodate the Olympics" (AP, 6/22). In London, Sarah Ebner wrote World Baseball Softball Confederation President Riccardo Fraccari said, "This is a great day for our sport. Today baseball and softball -- and the millions of athletes and fans who call it their sport -- reached first base." Meanwhile the governing body of surfing "was keen to emphasise its appeal to a younger audience." Int'l Surfing Association President Fernando Aguerre said, "With its youthful values and engagement, surfing has incredible global appeal and a unique and modern blend of high performance, style and culture. This is a significant milestone for our sport" (LONDON TIMES, 6/22).
