Softball in the 2016 Olympics

[coachEd]

What should have gotten the axe is Badminton and Handball. Oh wait, if you go the IOC website, here is the synopsis on handball:

The modern game of handball was first played towards the end of the 19th century in Denmark, Germany and Sweden. Recognition of field handball based on the games of "Raffball" (snatch ball) and "Königsbergerball" (Konrad Koch, 1846-1911) occurred at the turn of the century. G. Wallström introduced Sweden to the sport of "handball" in 1910.

After the men's game debuted on turf football fields at the 1936 Games in Berlin, the European-based sport next appeared in its present indoor form in 1972 at Munich. A women's division opened in 1976 and it has become one of the most highly attended Olympic sports.

Well, I guess we all know why it didnt get the axe; it is a European-founded event. Not to mention: "U.S. teams have not qualified for an Olympic Games since the 1996 Games in Atlanta. The last time the U.S. teams qualified for the Olympic Games without the home country inclusion was in 1992 in Barcelona." But since the U.S. dominates Olympic Softball (of course, Japan won the last Olympic gold), they feel they better cut it out entirely.

And here is part of the synopsis about Badminton:

While contemporary badminton first appeared in the mid-19th century, it evolved from the game battledore and shuttlecock, which can be traced back to ancient Greece, China, Japan and India.

Especially popular in Asia and Europe today, badminton became a full competition sport at the Olympic Games in 1992.

Again, now you know why these two "sports" are still in the olympics when the IOC is made up mostly of EU members.

[Skarp]

Just because someone cant golf and someone else can doesnt make it a sport. So your argument there stands no ground. I for one love golf but I would rather not have it in the olympics. So is bowling next? I have a 200 avg. that doesnt make it a sport because I am good at it. Does it???? We all are softball fans that is clear, but it is more and more odvious that we are the minority not the majority. So what! It's a great game that will flourish with or without the olympics..my 2 cents!!!!!

Hmmm...I'm curious what, on your view, makes something a sport. On my view, it's a physical competition/contest in which there can be a clearly decipherable winner. That might make auto racing a borderline sports activity (although there is a huge physical component to it), but how golf or bowling wouldn't qualify is beyond me.

As far as golf goes, it's not just a sport...it's an extremely difficult one. One in which you are competing not only against other players, but against the course itself. Every baseball field is basically the same. Every basketball court identical. But every golf course presents a different set of challenges that must be figured out and overcome. It's a hell of a lot easier to become a good football or basketball player than it is to become a good golfer. In fact, IMO, only baseball/softball are comparable to golf in requiring both mental mastery and the perfection of a wide array of discrete physical skills.

Now synchronized swimming??? They ought to drown whoever thought up that absurdity. Same goes for any "sport" that can only be scored by specially trained judges, while the rest of us scratch our heads and wonder what the hell is going on.

[Donnie]

We can sit here and argue about what is and what isnt a sport all day. Hell I dont think of soccer as a sport since only one guy can use his hands. lol.... But the fact remains the same and that is softball is out of the olympics. Softball will be just fine.

[MTR]

Golf will be a flop as there will be nothing special about the competition. It will be the same players playing the same format and they will fly in from the tournament the week before and fly out to the tournament the following weekend. There will be the hype and commercialism, but there will not be anything different that you saw last week or next week.

What SHOULD be done assuming somewhere along the way the IOC grows a brain is to approve 30-35 sports. There should be a number of core sports (22-23 events) required and permit the host to determine by whatever means they chose the remaining 5-6 events.

London would very likely had supported softball. This is why I believe the ISF should stage a tournament in Europe sometime around the Olympics.