"The removal of traditional sports that have been central from the beginning and were in the program of the Olympic Games in the times of Ancient Greece ... is unjustified," Putin was quoted as saying by the Russian news agency Interfax.The decision has outraged the wrestling community. In Greece, the Olympic Committee (HOC) urged the IOC to reverse its decision regarding the sport, which was a star attraction in the ancient Games.
“This is undoubtedly a decision against the history of the Olympics and of sports in general,” the HOC said in a statement, according to the Greek newspaper Kathimerini.
In February the executive board of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) made a surprise recommendation to drop wrestling from the Olympic program in 2020, leaving the sport to fight with seven others for one spot when the board meets in May.
Just because the IOC has recommended that the sport of wrestling be dropped from the 2020 Olympics does not mean that it is a done deal. The next step is for the IOC Executive Board to recommend a sport for the final spot in the 2020 Olympics. Wrestling will be considered for the position along with seven other sports. This recommendation happens in May in St. Petersburg, Russia. Then, the next step is for the entire International Olympic Committee to vote on the final program for the 2020 Olympics, which occurs in September in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Efforts have been made by USA Wrestling, FILA Wrestling, and other organizations to put pressure on the IOC to keep wrestling in the Olympics. If you would like to sign the petition to help their efforts, please go to
https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/put-pressure-ioc-overturn-their-decision-drop-wrestling-olympics-2020/ClDPYshl
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