Paris Olympics 2024 wraps up: LA 2028 to feature cricket, squash and much more

After days of blood, sweat, and tears, the Paris Olympic Games 2024 have come to an end! Athletes from 206 National Olympic Committees and the IOC Refugee Olympic Team (EOR) competed in the Paris 2024 Games. This year, they participated in 329 events across 32 sports and 48 disciplines.

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With the Paris Games now concluded, the focus has already shifted to the next edition. The 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles will feature several brand-new sports, along with the return of some that haven't been included in decades. 

Five sports were added to the 2028 Los Angeles Games by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) with baseball-softball, lacrosse and squash also confirmed for the program. Interestingly, Breaking and Boxing are set to be dropped from the Olympic program. So let's have a look at them.

Cricket:

The game will be played for the first time since 1900. The Olympic tournaments for men and women will each have six teams playing the shortened and dynamic Twenty20 format. To promote the support ahead of LA2028, the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2024 was hosted by West Indies and the United States. It has already given fans a taste of how cricket is played. Adding cricket to the Olympic program is expected to increase the value of India's broadcasting rights for the IOC by more than $100 million.

Lacrosse:

This game, formerly known as 'stickball', will also return for the first time since 1948. The proposed format for this game is Lacrosse Sixes, a fast-paced, compact variant of the sport. This will be lacrosse's third appearance in the Olympics, but the first in over a century, following appearances in 1904 and 1908.

Baseball:

This game made its formal debut at the 1992 Barcelona Games. It had previously appeared as an exhibition event at the 1900 Games and as a demonstration sport at several Olympics from 1912 to 1988. However, it was not designated as an official Olympic sport until 1992. Baseball, which was excluded from the 2012, 2016, 2020, and 2024 Games, will return to the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

Softball:

This game will return to the Olympics after competing at the Tokyo Games 2020. The sport made its debut at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta and has since appeared in three more Olympics. Softball will be an optional event at the Los Angeles Games in 2028, which will be held in Oklahoma City.

Squash:

This sport will make its Olympic debut at the 2028 Games, capping years of advocacy by the World Squash Federation. Although squash has never been a competitive sport in the Olympics, it did appear as a demonstration sport during the 2018 Summer Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires.

Flag football:

According to the IOC, this game will feature medal competitions for men and women, with teams playing five-on-five on a 50-yard pitch. This non-contact sport does not include offensive linemen.

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