16 new events added to Tokyo Olympics in 2020

The International Olympic Committee announced here on Friday that a net increase of 15 events will be made to the program of the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games. 

The International Olympic Committee announces that a net increase of 15 events will be made to the program of the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games, June 9, 2017. [File Photo: baidu.com]

The desicion was made during a meeting of the IOC Executive Board. Some of events are from the mixed events, incuding mixed doubles of table tennis, 4x400m mixed relay (athletics), men's and women's basketbal 3x3, 4x100m medely mixed relay, judo's mixed team event, mixed team archery event and mixed trianthlon team relay. 

The IOC said it will be "the highest representation of female athletes in Olympic history". In Tokyo, the number of mixed events will double from nine in Rio 2016 to 18. All new events will make use of existing venues.

But the overall number of participating athletes will be reduced by 285 from Rio 2016, the IOC said in a statement. 

Commenting on the decision, IOC President Thomas Bach said "The fascinating new events that we approved today, together with the five new sports that were added to the Tokyo 2020 program last year, represent a step-change in the Olympic program. I am delighted that the Olympic Games in Tokyo will be more youthful, more urban and will include more women."

The decision is a significant step towards achieving the 50 percent gender balance at the Olympic Games in both athletes and events, as clearly stated by Olympic Agenda 2020.

Four new International Federations (IFs) will move to gender-balanced in events for the first time (canoe, rowing, shooting and weightlifting). In terms of athletes, six IFs will move to gender balance for the first time (canoe, judo, rowing, sailing, shooting and weightlifting). At discipline level, gender balance is achieved in BMX racing, mountain bike and freestyle wrestling.

The program also includes youth-focused and urban-based additions such as basketball 3x3 and BMX freestyle, on top of sport climbing and skateboarding. Basketball 3x3 was a successful innovation at the Youth Olympic Games in Singapore 2010 and Nanjing 2014. Sport climbing and skateboarding were proposed along with baseball/softball, karate, and surfing by Tokyo 2020 last year.

The next edition of the Summer Youth Olympic Games, which will take place in Buenos Aires in October 2018, will already feature BMX freestyle, karate and sport climbing as well as several new innovative urban sports such as breakdance and roller sports.