Demonstration sport facts for kids

A demonstration sport is a special kind of sport played to show it off and help it become more popular. These sports are often seen at the Olympic Games, but they don't give out official medals.

Demonstration sports first appeared at the 1912 Summer Olympics. Sweden, the host country, decided to include glima, which is a traditional Icelandic wrestling style. The medals for glima did not count as official Olympic medals. After that, most countries hosting the Games chose to include at least one demonstration sport. These were usually popular sports from the host country. For example, baseball was a demonstration sport at the 1984 Los Angeles Games, and taekwondo was shown at the 1988 Seoul Games.

From 1912 to 1992, almost every Summer Olympics featured demonstration sports. Some of these sports became so popular that they later became official Olympic sports! The medals given for demonstration events looked like the official Olympic medals but were smaller. They were never added to the official medal count for countries.

The idea of demonstration sports was stopped after the 1992 Summer Olympics. The Olympic program had grown very large, and it became hard for the host cities to give enough attention to these extra sports. The IOC (the group that runs the Olympics) said that demonstration sports needed the same care as official sports. It's unlikely that demonstration sports will be a required part of future Olympics. However, the Beijing Olympic Committee was allowed to hold a wushu (a Chinese martial art) competition alongside the 2008 Beijing Games. This was called the Wushu Tournament Beijing 2008.

From the 1984 Summer Olympics to the 2004 Summer Olympics, two Paralympic events were included in the Olympic athletics program. These were men's and women's wheelchair racing. Many people thought these were demonstration sports, but they were actually meant to promote the Paralympic Games. Disabled skiing events were also held as demonstration sports at the 1984 and 1988 Winter Olympics.

Summer Olympic Demonstration Sports

Here is a list of demonstration sports played at the Summer Olympic Games:

• ¹ Even though demonstration sports officially started in 1912, some sports competitions were held at the same time as the 1908 Olympics.
• ² Baseball was officially removed from the Olympic program after the 2008 Beijing Games. (See also ⁸)
• ³ Handball was also part of the program in 1936.
• ⁴ Tennis was part of the program between 1896 and 1924.
• ⁵ The IOC allowed a separate wushu competition to happen (2008 Beijing Wushu Tournament), but this was not an official demonstration sport.
• ⁶ The IOC allowed a separate esports competition to happen (called the eGames), but this was not an official demonstration sport.
• ⁷ This was not officially listed as a demonstration sport. However, the Japan Sumo Association held a special two-day sumo exhibition tournament between the Olympics and Paralympics. This was part of a larger official Olympic cultural festival.
• ⁸ On August 3, 2016, the 129th IOC Session was held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. At this meeting, the IOC agreed on a new rule. This rule lets the host city suggest adding sports to the Olympic program. Because of this new rule, Baseball/Softball were added back for 2020 only. Karate, Sport Climbing, Surfing, and Skateboarding were also added this way.
• ⁹ On June 24, 2019, the 134th IOC Session was held in Lausanne, Switzerland. At this meeting, the Paris Organising Committee suggested that Surfing, Sport Climbing, and Skateboarding should return. They also suggested adding Breaking. On December 7, 2020, the IOC confirmed all four sports.

Winter Olympic Demonstration Sports

Here is a list of demonstration sports played at the Winter Olympic Games:

• ¹ Curling was part of the program in 1924. In 2002, the IOC decided this would be considered an official Olympic event.
• ² This was not listed as a demonstration sport. However, the Intel Extreme Masters held an esports tournament for two games (StarCraft II and Steep). This had official support from the IOC.

See also

• Olympic sports
• World Games