IOC conducts secret ballot

[Jester of Death]

Secret ballot eliminates baseball, softball

SINGAPORE -- Baseball and softball were tossed out of the Olympics for the 2012 London Games on Friday.

The action by the International Olympic Committee marked the first time it had dropped any sports from the Summer Games in 69 years. The committee then rejected the five sports wanting to get in.

Each of the 28 existing sports was put to a secret vote by the IOC, and baseball and softball failed to receive a majority required to stay. The other 26 sports made the cut.

IOC president Jacques Rogge said baseball and softball, two sports invented in America, would be eligible to win their way back into the Olympics for 2016.

Baseball and softball, which will remain on the program for the 2008 Beijing Games, are the first sports eliminated from the Olympics since polo in 1936.

"I think they've made a big, big mistake," said Tommy Lasorda, the former Dodgers manager who guided the U.S. team to the gold medal in the 2000 Sydney Games. "Baseball is played by all countries now, and softball, too. I think that's really going to hurt the Olympics. I don't want to knock the other sports, but I think this is a big mistake."

With two slots open on the program, the IOC voted from a waiting list of five sports: golf, rugby, squash, karate and roller sports. Squash and karate were nominated for inclusion but were rejected overwhelmingly.

With a two-thirds margin required to join the program, members voted 63-39 against squash and 63-38 against karate. Rogge had proposed a show of hands for approval of the two sports but was booed by the delegates and forced to stick with a secret vote.

“  Problems with doping in U.S. baseball probably cost the sport dearly. ”

  — Australian IOC member John Coates

It was a stunning conclusion to a long, complex procedure that took nine rounds of voting. Rogge hailed the "very democratic" result while several members said the rejection of new sports signaled a sharp protest against the whole process.

"Nobody was happy with the outcome in the morning, nobody was happy with the result of the afternoon," senior Canadian member Dick Pound said. "And we've lost two sports and done nothing to replace them."

Dropping the two sports will remove 16 teams and more than 300 athletes from the Olympics. Softball is the only female-only sport in the games.

Baseball, which became a medal sport in 1992, has been vulnerable because of steroids in the United States and the absence of major-league players from the Olympics. Softball, a women's-only medal sport since 1996 that the United States has won all three times, has been in danger because of its association with baseball and a perceived lack of global appeal and participation.

"The lack of the MLB players -- I think people have looked and said, 'Well, all right, if there's to be a change, that seems to be the logic of it,'" British IOC member Craig Reedie said.

While Major League Baseball has toughened its drug-testing programs, they still fall far short of Olympic standards.

"Problems with doping in U.S. baseball probably cost the sport dearly," Australian IOC member John Coates said.

Several IOC members also cited high stadium costs associated with both sports, saying baseball and softball venues have little use in some host cities after the games.

"I feel like somebody who has been thrown out -- it's certainly not a good feeling," said Aldo Notari, the Italian president of the international baseball federation. "I don't think the IOC members know our sport deeply enough. But we'll continue to survive. We're looking ahead to Beijing and putting on a good show."

Don Porter, the American president of the international softball federation, said his sport's ties to baseball created problems.

"We tried to keep our distance," he said. "But I think there's still too many people think we're part of baseball. We're absolutely not. We're a separate sport."

Cuba won the baseball gold medal at the Athens Olympics, beating Australia. Japan, the bronze medalist, was one of the few nations that sent its top professional baseball players to Athens.

"This really hurts Japan," Japan Olympic Committee secretary general Tsutomu Hayashi said. "Baseball and softball are both team sports that draw a lot of excitement and are the only ones that medals are a virtual certainty."

The vote to eliminate sports was kept secret. Not even the IOC members or sports federations were given the totals. The secrecy was requested by the international federations to avoid any ranking or embarrassment for any sports that just made the cut.

Pound said the secrecy undermined the IOC's moves for openness.

"What kind of message does the IOC send when there is complete secrecy on an issue that is important to the world?" he said.

[lanky316]

I'm not massively surprised that these two sports were dropped to be fair, they're not particularly globaly played as much as certain events on the waiting list.

After the sucess of the commonwealth games I wouldn't be surprised if 7's got in, they did quite well and Rugby is perhaps the second biggest team sport in the world.

[sahyder1]

After the sucess of the commonwealth games I wouldn't be surprised if 7's got in, they did quite well and Rugby is perhaps the second biggest team sport in the world.

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[lanky316]

That's not on the list though

[sahyder1]

That's not on the list though

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Edited July 8, 2005 by sahyder1

[MDK]

Cricket would suit the olympics, it can join a load of other boring sports. Skateboarding would make a better olympic sport but I don't see it happening.

[Big Red Fury]

That's not on the list though

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the sports on that list were already shot down and Cricket not being on the list has nothing to do with your point.

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[Guest Booker T & The MG's]

I'd put Golf in, for it's sheer global following and it's prestigous amateur status.

[Ananas]

Baseball was removed because Western Europeans suck at it. It's bullshit when you consider how many 2-3 country sports there are already in the Olympics. There hasn't been a lack of competition in International baseball competitions for decades now.

[Guest Pirate Chasin' Booty]

They need to seriously rethink all the events, to me its just getting to extremes, the archers don't even use bow and arrows anymore, I just wish that someone would enter an athlete who came dressed as Robin Hood and had a traditional bow and arrow, rather than a glorified gun.

[ACCBiggz]

I'd put Golf in, for it's sheer global following and it's prestigous amateur status.

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[lanky316]

I'd put Golf in, for it's sheer global following and it's prestigous amateur status.

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The PGA players would end up in this making it another PGA event more or less. I see no reason why this should be added. As much as I like Tiger, I'd rather see Golf off the Olympics than hearing about Tiger going for gold, or Vijay, Phil, Ernie, and the rest.

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[Cactus Drags]

Baseball and softball aren't as global as America seems to think. That said, how the fuck synchronised swimming is still in, I've no idea. It's not even a frigging sport.

Rugby 7's would be a good addition I think. Not golf, it's not competitive enough. Cricket...maybe.

Archery, as Mudda said, needs to go back to basics. The olympics are about competition between atheletes, not using technology to be better than you are.

[K]

Don't worry, the rest of the world can still play baseball in the World Series.

[MDK]

Don't worry, the rest of the world can still play baseball in the World Series.

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Baseball and softball aren't as global as America seems to think. That said, how the fuck synchronised swimming is still in, I've no idea. It's not even a frigging sport.

Rugby 7's would be a good addition I think. Not golf, it's not competitive enough. Cricket...maybe.

Archery, as Mudda said, needs to go back to basics. The olympics are about competition between atheletes, not using technology to be better than you are.

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Exactly, there are a load of sports in there that we all gave up when we were 12.

[Guest Booker T & The MG's]

I'd put Golf in, for it's sheer global following and it's prestigous amateur status.

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Much like Basketball and the like have been promoting amateurs?

The PGA players would end up in this making it another PGA event more or less. I see no reason why this should be added. As much as I like Tiger, I'd rather see Golf off the Olympics than hearing about Tiger going for gold, or Vijay, Phil, Ernie, and the rest.

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[Lowerdeck]

Yes, there's a lot of sports in there that need to get purified, a few sports that need to get removed, and a few sports needing something to get more competition to the same powerhouse 1-3 nations.

Softball ... won't be missed. The United States was gonna win gold for a long long time.

Baseball ... this one's a harder contest. Although it's unfortunate that pros can't play here, there was more international competition. It wasn't the U.S. that had the favour to win every year like softball. Cuba and Japan, among others, are always there to win the gold. But well, at least there's the World Championships that will be coming along in a year or two.

[Colly]

I'm quite surprised squash and karate were shot down so quickly. Karate has a strong global following and judo is pretty well established as a popular olympic sport. Plus for me squash is a far better sport than something like table tennis.

At least we don't have to bother building any baseball stadiums now though.

[lanky316]

You notice the ones dropped were the only ewvents for Regents Park? Sounds like a fix to me