| Advertisement |
BUENOS AIRES, Sept. 8 (UPI) -- The venerable sport of wrestling will be back in the Olympic Games beginning in 2020, the International Olympic Committee said Sunday. The IOC, meeting in Argentina, voted to include the sport as part of the 2020 Summer Games in Tokyo and the 2024 games as well.
Advertisement
"I want to offer my sincere gratitude to each member of the International Olympic Committee that voted to save Olympic wrestling today," said Nenad Lalovic, president of the International Federation of Associated Wrestling Styles. "With this vote, you have shown that the steps we have taken to improve our sport have made a difference."
Wrestling had been part of the Olympics since 1896 before the IOC stunned purists when it decided to cut it from the 2016 Games in Brazil.
It was voted in by a wide margin Sunday, gaining 49 of a possible 95 votes. Baseball-and-softball received 24 votes and squash received 22 votes.
