Mixed doubles tennis set for 2012 Olympics

LAUSANNE, Switzerland, Dec. 10 (UPI) -- Mixed doubles tennis and a pair of women's cycling events were added to the 2012 Summer Olympics lineup Thursday by the International Olympic Committee.

The IOC said the changes were made at the request of the International Tennis Federation and the International Cycling Union with the intention of increasing women's participation in the Olympics to be contested in London.

The mixed-doubles competition marks a return to the Olympics schedule but the event hasn't been contested since the 1924 Games. The IOC didn't announce details as to number of teams but was known to be looking for assurances the world's top singles players would participate.

The IOC did say the event "will not increase the current number of athletes" at the Games.

The 2012 Olympics will have five track cycling events each for men and women, a switch from the seven men's events and three women's in Beijing. The events will be sprint, team sprint, keirin, team pursuit and omnium. The final event combines six varied competitions, much like track and field's decathlon.

The changes were the only ones accepted by the IOC, which received suggestions from 17 federations to modify events.