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Olympic sports facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts
Athens archery
An archery competition at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. Archery returned to the Olympics in 1972 after being gone for many years.

Olympic sports are the amazing athletic competitions held during the Summer Olympic Games and Winter Olympic Games. The 2024 Summer Olympics featured 32 sports, while the 2022 Winter Olympics had seven. Every Olympic sport is managed by a group called an International Federation (IF), which sets the rules for athletes around the world.

The Olympics are always adding exciting new sports. The 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo introduced skateboarding, sport climbing, and surfing. Breakdancing made its first appearance at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. Looking ahead, ski mountaineering will debut at the 2026 Winter Olympics, and flag football and squash will join the 2028 Summer Olympics.

A Look Back in Time

When the modern Olympic Games were started by Pierre de Coubertin, his goal was to include "All games, all nations." He believed that traditional games from different cultures were important.

At the 1904 Summer Olympics, there were special "Anthropology Days" where athletes from Asia, Africa, and South America showed off their local games. However, this idea didn't last long, and for many years, the Olympics mostly featured popular Western sports.

What Counts as an Olympic Sport?

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has a special way of organizing the Games. A "sport" can be broken down into smaller parts called "disciplines" and "events."

  • A sport is a whole category, like Aquatics or Skating.
  • A discipline is a specific type of that sport. For example, the sport of Aquatics includes disciplines like swimming, diving, and water polo.
  • An event is a specific competition where medals are awarded. In swimming, the "men's 100-meter freestyle" is one event.

Some sports have many disciplines. Skiing has six, including alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, and snowboarding. Gymnastics has three: artistic, rhythmic, and trampoline.

How a Sport Joins the Olympics

For a sport to even be considered for the Olympics, it must be popular worldwide and have an International Federation recognized by the IOC. The committee that organizes each Olympic Games can also suggest new sports to add.

There are limits on how many athletes and events can be in the Games. The Summer Olympics aims for about 10,500 athletes, while the Winter Olympics has a limit of around 2,900 athletes. This helps keep the Games from getting too big.

Interestingly, sports that use engines, like car racing, were once not allowed. This rule was changed in 2016, so it's possible we could see sports like motor racing in the Olympics one day.

How Olympic Sports Have Changed

Curling Torino 2006 Pinerolo Palaghiaccio scena1
Curling became an official Olympic sport at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan.

The list of Olympic sports is always changing. Some sports have been in the Games since the very beginning, while others have been added, removed, and sometimes even brought back.

The Originals

A few summer sports have been in every single Summer Olympics: athletics (track and field), aquatics (swimming), cycling, fencing, and gymnastics.

For the Winter Games, the sports that have never been missed are skiing, skating, and ice hockey.

Comeback Sports

Some sports were part of the early Olympics, disappeared, and then made a triumphant return.

Demonstration Sports

In the past, host countries could showcase a local sport as a "demonstration sport." These were just for show, and medals didn't count. For example, baseball and curling started as demonstration sports before becoming official. This practice was stopped after 1992 to keep the Games from getting too complicated.

Recent Changes

The IOC now allows host cities to propose adding a few sports just for their Games. This is why Tokyo 2020 added sports like karate and surfing. For the Paris 2024 Games, breakdancing was added.

For the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, five sports will be added: baseball/softball, cricket, flag football, lacrosse, and squash.

Summer Olympic Sports

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Volleyball has been a popular Summer Olympic sport since 1964.

The first Olympic Games in 1896 had only ten sports. Over the years, this has grown, and the 2028 Summer Olympics will feature 36 sports. For a sport to be included in the Summer Games, it must be played in at least 75 countries on four continents.

Here is a list of sports that are currently in the Summer Olympics or have been in the past.

Current Summer Sports

Future and Returning Summer Sports (for 2028)

Discontinued Summer Sports

These sports were once part of the Olympics but are no longer on the program.

Winter Olympic Sports

Ice hockey at the 2014 Winter Olympics – Men's tournament Czech Republic vs Slovakia 2
Ice hockey was first played at the Summer Olympics in 1920 before moving to the first Winter Games in 1924.

The Winter Olympics began in 1924 to celebrate sports that are played on snow and ice. To be included, a winter sport must be popular in at least 25 countries across three continents.

Current Winter Sports

Future Winter Sports (for 2026)

  • Ski mountaineering

Recognized Sports Not in the Olympics

1904 tug of war
Tug of war was an Olympic sport until 1920. Today, it is still a recognized sport with its own international competitions.

The IOC officially recognizes many other sports that are not currently part of the Olympic Games. These sports have their own international federations and world championships. Some of them might be added to the Olympics in the future.

Many of these sports are part of the World Games, another major international event for sports that are not in the Olympics.

Here are a few examples of recognized sports:

Images for kids

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Deportes olímpicos para niños

  • Association of Summer Olympic International Federations
  • Association of International Olympic Winter Sports Federations
  • Association of IOC Recognised International Sports Federations
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