TOTALLY GEEKED!

Roller derby – not part of the Olympics yet. But pole dancing, poker, and foosball may soon be if the Olympic officials based at Switzerland’s Global Association of International Sports Federations have their way. Earlier in October, the association approved Observer status for all three – the Federation of (Match) Poker, International Pole Sports Federation and International Table Soccer federation plus four other sports they’re calling “nontraditional.” Obtaining observer status is the first step of many to become an official sport represented at the Olympic games.

These three activities known more for their bar room and casino appeal than Olympic sports made their way into observer status before other much more sportlike – traditional or nontraditional. Such as dodgeball. Or karate. Or Baseball even, which is trying for its second shot at becoming an Olympic-qualifying sport.

Karate, surfing, dodgeball, skateboarding, sport climbing, and baseball (for the second time) will debut at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and the Buenos Aires Youth Olympics, according to Patrick Baumann, GAISF’s president. Baumann said:

We warmly welcome our Observers. This is an exciting time for them and for us and we will do everything within our remit to help them realize their full potential as international federations within the global sport’s family and, one day, maybe become part of the Olympic program.”

Achieving Observer status means that the Olympics will recognize pole dancing, foosball, and poker as each reaches certain levels. The National Olympic committees must officiate them, and each sport must meet the equality rules including being:

“…Practiced by men in 75 countries on four continents and by women in 40 countries on three continents.”

While arm wrestling, karate, baseball, and even foosball might fit that bill, pole dancing may not. Practiced by women primarily, men pole dance too, and take classes, but not nearly as much. Also called pole fitness, pole dancing classes focus on the sheer strength training it takes to become adept in adequately executing pole dancing moves.

What’s almost insane is that a contact sport such as roller derby is well known, competitive, and intercontinental, yet isn’t as close to becoming an Olympic sport as pole dancing, foosball and poker are – and not for the lack of trying, either. Rome plans to include Roller Sports in its 2024 Olympics; Derby, for example.

Furthermore, most people do not realize just how healthy and well-trained a person must be to be able to hold themselves up and wrap around a pole, let alone perform its moves.

But is it a sport? That’s a good question. Pole dancing, like poker and foosball, have national and international associations and championship competitions.

Poker, on the other hand, being a “mind sport” may have its own problems, in spite of it receiving Observer status. The Olympic Committee banned mind sports such as chess some time ago.

Whether you consider these activities as “sports” or not, the fact is that allowing them to grow, and nurturing them through the process of becoming officially recognized Olympic sports will indeed bring a younger generation to the games.

https://www.progressiveliberal.net/tokyo-olympics-2020-foosball-poker-pole-dancing/