[RuleOfSteel2]

Kyryllo brings up a major point, bjj does not have an international governing body. Even if the sport establishes one it will need to operate successfully for a few years before even being considered.

As previously mentioned, the sport must be represented in a specific number of countries, and the number is high. Note: curling is a winter sport not summer sport, the winter olympic criteria is different.

I don't see bjj being added to the Olympics. The IOC has made it pretty clear that they don't want the number of participants to grow, so for a sport to be added another will need to be dropped and/or a cut in the number of qualifiers in some other sport(s). Remember the Summer Olympics recently dropped a few sports.

Women's freestyle wrestling was organized for decades, has held a world tournament since 1987, and by 2002 85 of the 140 olympic affiliated countries had women's wrestling teams before their sport was admitted in 2004. And that was at the expense of the men.

Furthermore, the IOC has forced FILA (governing body of wrestling) to cut the number of weight divisions and competitors. Within the past 10-15 years international wrestling has been cut from 10 now down to 7 weight divisions. Part of IOC's reasoning was cutting the men's divisions to add the women's divisions (four). Oddly, in non olympic years the women wrestle in 6 divisions while the men stick to the cut divisions.

As the IOC has pressured FILA to make wrestling more "spectator friendly", the rules have been constantly changing. I don't see them viewing bjj as anything close to spectator friendly. Note, they are looking at it as people who know little or nothing about the sport not as competitors or fans of the sport.

Lastly, FILA is moving to take over sombo. Given FILA's political ties, size and power I think sombo just left bjj & sub wrestling in the dust in the race to the olympics (I'm not saying the Olympics are on sombo's horizon but it is definitely closer for them then for bjj).

[RuleOfSteel2]

double post.

[scorcho]

I would love to see it, but I doubt it will happen.

[azjudoboxer]

They have no gi grappling it's called freestyle and greco roman

[greedysob]

I would really like to see sub wrestling in the olympics. It would give Abu Dhabi compeditors a more mainstream venue to showcase their atheltic ability to the world. I don't think the major Brazilian Jiu Jitsu associations would mind an olympic comitee choosing a submission wrestling event over a bjj event either. BJJ has a history of wanting to prove itself over other styles, so having a more open event in which BJJ competitors can compete agains catch wrestliers, sambo(ists)?, judokas, etc, would probably make them happy.

(Notice, I didn't say bjj was better than the other styles above, just that it likes to compete against those other styles. Just wanted to clear that up before the thread was hyjacked into another one of those)

[vanguard_anon]

I could be wrong but I remember hearing on TV that that hosting country can add a few sports if it pleases. Typically they add sports where they have a few ringers. I remember the annoucer mentioning that the US put lousche (spelling?) and a few extreme sports in there because we had the guys to get golds.

Maybe the best chance for these sports to get a shot in the olympics is to wait for the right hosting country?

[tinker_190]

Why are you guys dissing table tennis and curling? They are popular outside of the U.S.

[Kyryllo]

Originally Posted by vanguard_anon

I could be wrong but I remember hearing on TV that that hosting country can add a few sports if it pleases. Typically they add sports where they have a few ringers. I remember the annoucer mentioning that the US put lousche (spelling?) and a few extreme sports in there because we had the guys to get golds.

Maybe the best chance for these sports to get a shot in the olympics is to wait for the right hosting country?

The host can hold an exhibition tournament for a sport it likes and is approved by the IOC, but OUTSIDE of the official olympic program. The winners are not olympic champion. The only way to come in the official program is by the way of olympic recognition (I wrote the ruls in my earlier post) plus huge active popularity plus loby plus luck.

[Sax MMA]

Would love to see it. Not sure if it would fly tho

[Brooklyn]

If curling qualifies as an olympic sport, hat so should BJJand sub-grappling.

Who plays "Curling"?

No one.