WTH ? What is with those idiots ? They approve of
glorified baton twirling
plus Japan, Taiwan, Philippines, Korea, Israel, etc, and
now they kick out
.
at all, ever, under any circumstances.
.
.
.
.
with the international federation (FILA) calling it an
aberration, petitions launched with the
United
StatesWhite
House and on-line wrestling support groups signing up
thousands of supporters.
India's government said
on Wednesday it would seek the support of other countries
where wrestling is popular to help the sport remain an Olympic
discipline.
"These reactions, they are quite normal," IOC vice-president
Thomas
Bach told reporters. "This would have happened with any
decision. You have to find the right balance between tradition
and progress. This was a decision about core sports and
nothing more," he said of Tuesday's vote that cut the core
Olympic sports from 26 to 25, leaving out wrestling.
"I am happy about
FILA's reaction,
to draw up a plan to act. That is the right way. Keep in mind
a final decision has not yet been taken. If they (FILA)
continue like that they will win a lot of sympathies," said
Bach, a potential presidential candidate later this year.
The IOC's executive board
will decide in
St Petersburg
in May to decide which of eight candidate sports, including
wrestling, will be put forward to win the spot left vacant for
the 2020 Games.
Painful decision
It will then put its recommendation for the 25 core sports and
the new entry to a vote at its session in Argentina.
"It was always going to be a painful decision," said IOC
member and head of the organisation's finance commission
Richard
Carrion, also a potential presidential candidate.
"No matter what we do, it will be criticised by someone," said
Puerto Rican Carrion, whose country won a silver medal in
wrestling at the
London2012
Olympics, one of two medals overall.
"From a personal point of view I am sad. I have become
attached to the wrestling club (in
Puerto
Rico) which doesn't even have a regulation-size mat and
still managed to send three athletes to the Games."
For Juan Antonio
Samaranch
Junior, who is both an executive board member and a modern
pentathlon vice-president, the decision was a good one.
"I am very sorry for wrestling as it is a sport I respect,"
the son of former IOC president Samaranch, told reporters.
"I cannot be surprised by the reaction because any sport would
have created the same reaction."
Wrestling's surprise exit has been blamed by some on a lack of
political support within the executive board, where other
sports at risk — including modern pentathlon and taekwondo —
had the upper hand with representatives in the 15-member
group.
Asked whether his double capacity was a conflict of interest,
Samaranch said: "I am here in my capacity as executive board
member."
India to lobby
India's government will seek the support of other
countries where wrestling is popular to help the sport
remain an Olympic discipline, the country's sports ministry
said on Wednesday.
Wrestling was stunned when the International Olympic
Committee's (IOC) Executive Board made a surprise
recommendation on Tuesday to drop the sport from the 2020
Games.
Part of the first modern Olympics in 1896 and all further
editions of the Games, wrestling has now joined seven other
candidate sports battling for one spot in a revamped
programme.
India has won four Olympic wrestling medals and the country's
government termed the IOC decision "most unfortunate and
shocking".
"This ancient sport has helped the Indian grapplers to make a
mark and bring India on the global sporting map," the Indian
sports ministry said in a statement.
"Wrestling is a popular sport not only in India but also in
many other countries such as
Russia,
Iran,
Uzbekistan,
Mongolia,
Japan, China etc.
"The exclusion of the discipline from the Olympics will
demoralize the sport's participants and will deeply affect the
sustenance of the game in the future."
Popular sport
The
Indian
government said it would raise the issue with the IOC
and hoped the sport could find its way back as a core Olympic
discipline.
"Ministry ... will also take up the issue with other nations
where wrestling is a popular sport," the statement added.
"The ministry will take up the issue with the IOC to
reconsider its decision and retain wrestling in the category
of core sports in the Olympic Games."
The
Indian
Olympic Association (IOA), banned by the IOC in December
due to government interference in its elections, said the move
will demoralize youngsters who took up the sport after the
country's good showing at the London Olympics.
Two of India's overall total of six medals at last year's
Games came in wrestling with
Beijing
Olympics bronze medallist Sushil Kumar going one better
by winning silver in the 66kg freestyle and Yogeshwar Dutt
claiming the 60kg freestyle bronze.
"Wrestling is part of Indian sporting folklore. It is a very
popular sport in the over one-billion strong country," said
the statement from Vijay Kumar Malhotra, the IOA's acting
president.
"The recent good showing by the Indian and other Asian
wrestlers in the Olympics has boosted this sport in the region
and thousands of youngsters have taken to it and removing it
from the Olympic programme will do immense harm to the sports
and will de-motivate and demoralise these youngsters."
