Baseball and softball are Olympic sports again.
After being taken off the official program after 2008, both sports made a comeback for the 2021 Summer Olympics — played in 2021 thanks to a global pandemic. That marked the first time in 13 years anyone was awarded gold medals for their dominance on the diamond.
However, you won’t see either sport in Paris for the 2024 Summer Olympics. The short answer why? The Paris organizers didn’t want it.
The 2024 Paris Olympics organizing committee didn’t include baseball or softball
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) is ultimately responsible for staging the games and deciding which events will be part of it. They aren’t alone. They make the lineup, per the IOC, “upon recommendations of the Olympic Programme Commission and in cooperation with the International Federations and the respective Organising Committee of the Olympic Games.”
That gave local organizers additional sway when it came to picking new sports for its Games. Paris chose skateboarding, surfing, sport climbing and breakdancing. In the process, it left 2021 Olympic sports baseball, softball and karate off the docket.
Fortunately, softball and baseball will return for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics
That local influence was beneficial for baseball and softball during an Olympiad in Japan, which brought the two sports back to the podium. It’s even bigger where it’s a national pastime. The LA28 committee offered six new sports for its Games, the majority of which are extremely American in nature:
- baseball and softball
- flag football
- lacrosse
- squash
- cricket
The question is what form the two diamond sports will take in 2028. Major League Baseball has long resisted any break in play that would allow the best players in the world to take part. Professional softball doesn’t have the same kind of infrastructure, but leagues like Women’s Professional Fastpitch, Association of Fastpitch Professionals and Athletes Unlimited would also have to alter their schedules to accommodate a two-week break and all the prep that comes with it.