After 16 days of 329 events across 32 sports with 10,714 athletes, the 2024 Paris Olympics has finally come to an end. The American team led the medal tally with 126 medals, followed by the Chinese team with 91 medals. Leaving France on a very high note, the biggest sporting extravaganza will now take a four-year leap. But when it returns for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, it will delight five new sports fans.
Even before the Paris Games, the IOC announced the introduction of five new sports in the next edition of the prestigious quadrennial event. So, without further ado, let’s take a look at all the new sports that are going to be an integral part of the Olympics in 2028:
1. Flag Football
Earlier in July 2022, the NFL and IFAF came together to bid for the inclusion of flag football in the Olympic events. After multiple rounds of process on October 16, 2023, the famous American sports finally made a cut to be part of the Los Angeles Games. Fans might certainly be excited to see the likes of Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce, Lamar Jackson, and others competing at the biggest sporting extravaganza.
2. Cricket
In the entire history of the Olympics, the gentleman’s game called Cricket has only been played once. And that was back in 1900. However, big cricket boards such as BCCI and ECB opposed the inclusion of their sport in the biggest multicountry event of all time. By 2020, both the boards decided to back ICC’s appeal to include cricket in the 2028 edition. Certainly, it helped as it’s announced that the sports that developed icons such as Sachin Tendulkar, Brian Lara, MS Dhoni, and Virat Kohli will be part of two consecutive editions.
3. Baseball/Softball
Although Baseball isn’t technically a new sport in the Olympics, it has never actually been a regular fixture. The 2028 Los Angeles Olympics will mark its seventh time in the prestigious multi-sport event. However, it is noteworthy that most of the baseball-playing countries are in the Americas. So, will other teams from across the globe will have a chance? That’s a big question.
4. Lacrosse
Another new sport in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics is Lacrosse. Having previously been played at the 1904 and 1908 editions, the sport got lost in the hoard of multiple other more entertaining sports. However, the IOC has now sanctioned a provisional status for the game, and the Sixes format will be part of the next edition of the biggest sporting extravaganza.
5. Squash
After having tennis, badminton, and table tennis, the IOC is now introducing another racket-and-ball sport in the upcoming Los Angeles games. Since the IOC has now recognized the World Squash Federation, Squash will be an optional sport in the next edition. It will certainly be interesting to see what kind of reception the sports will witness in 2028.
