SafekipediaDemonstration sport
Adapted from Wikipedia · Discoverer experience
A demonstration sport, or exhibition sport, is a sport played to promote it, rather than as part of standard medal competition. This often happens during big events like the Olympic Games, but it can also happen at other sports gatherings.
Demonstration sports were first officially introduced in the 1924 Summer Olympics. After that, most Olympic Games included at least one demonstration sport, usually one that was popular or typical in the host country. For example, baseball was a demonstration sport at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games, and taekwondo was shown at the 1988 Seoul Olympic Games. Some of these sports later became so popular that they were added as official Olympic sports in later Games.
Traditionally, medals for demonstration events were smaller but looked like the regular Olympic medals. However, these medals were not counted in the overall medal tallies. Demonstration sports were stopped after the 1992 Summer Olympics because as the Olympic program grew larger, it became harder for organizers to give them enough attention. The IOC wanted the same level of treatment for all sports, making it difficult to include demonstration sports. Although they are unlikely to be required in future Olympics, special cases like a wushu (martial arts) competition happened alongside the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games with special permission.
In addition to the Summer Olympics, some Paralympic events were also treated like demonstration sports. From the 1984 Summer Olympics to the 2004 Summer Olympics, men's and women's wheelchair racing events were part of the athletics programme to help promote the Paralympic Games. There were also disabled skiing events at some Winter Olympics, like in alpine and Nordic skiing during 1988, to show support for the Winter Olympics.
Summer Olympics
Below is the list of demonstration sports and additional sports at the Summer Olympic Games. Bold shows a sport that was tested with full medal status, starting from the 2020 Summer Olympics, while italics mean a sport that is not officially recognized as a demonstration sport by the IOC.
| Games | Demonstration sports (1908–1992)Additional sports (2020–present) | Entered the Olympic program (where applicable) |
|---|---|---|
| 1908 London | • cycle polo (men) • dueling (men) | |
| 1912 Stockholm | • baseball (men) • glima (men) | • 1992 |
| 1920 Antwerp | • korfball (mixed) | |
| 1924 Paris | • Basque pelota (men) • la canne (men) • canoeing and kayaking (men) • savate (men) • volleyball | • 1936 • 1964 |
| 1928 Amsterdam | • kaatsen (men) • korfball (mixed) • lacrosse (men) | |
| 1932 Los Angeles | • American football (men) • lacrosse (men) | |
| 1936 Berlin | • baseball (men) • gliding (men) | • 1992 |
| 1948 London | • lacrosse (men) • Swedish (Ling) gymnastics (men and women) | |
| 1952 Helsinki | • Finnish baseball (men) • handball (men) | • 1972 |
| 1956 Melbourne | • Australian rules football (men) • baseball (men) | • 1992 |
| 1960 Rome | (none) | |
| 1964 Tokyo | • baseball (men) • budō (men) | • 1992 |
| 1968 Mexico City | • Basque pelota (men) • tennis (men and women) | • 1988 |
| 1972 Munich | • badminton (men and women) • water skiing (men and women) | • 1992 |
| 1976 Montreal | (none) | |
| 1980 Moscow | (none) | |
| 1984 Los Angeles | • baseball (men) • tennis (men and women) | • 1992 • 1988 |
| 1988 Seoul | • badminton (men and women) • baseball (men) • bowling (men and women) • judo (women) • taekwondo (men and women) | • 1992 • 1992 • 1992 • 2000 |
| 1992 Barcelona | • Basque pelota (men and women) • roller hockey (men) • taekwondo (men and women) | • 2000 |
| 1996 Atlanta | (none) | |
| 2000 Sydney | (none) | |
| 2004 Athens | (none) | |
| 2008 Beijing | (none) | |
| 2012 London | (none) | |
| 2016 Rio de Janeiro | (none) | |
| 2020 Tokyo | • baseball (men) • softball (women) • karate (men and women) • sport climbing (men and women) • surfing (men and women) • skateboarding (men and women) | • 2028 • 2028 • 2028 |
| 2024 Paris | • breaking (men and women) • sport climbing (men and women) • surfing (men and women) • skateboarding (men and women) | • 2028 • 2028 • 2028 |
| 2028 Los Angeles | • baseball (men) / softball (women) • cricket • flag football • lacrosse • squash | |
| 2032 Brisbane | TBC | |
Winter Olympics
Below is the list of demonstration sports at the Winter Olympic Games. Bold shows a sport that was tried with full medal status, starting with the 2022 Winter Olympics. Italics show a sport that is not officially recognized as a demonstration sport by the IOC.
Commonwealth Games
Demonstration sports have also been part of the Commonwealth Games, sometimes called exhibition sports.
| Games | Demonstration sports | Entered the Commonwealth Games program (where applicable) |
|---|---|---|
| 1958 Cardiff | • polo • show jumping | |
| 1962 Perth | (none) | |
| 1966 Kingston | (none) | |
| 1970 Edinburgh | (none) | |
| 1974 Christchurch | • artist gymnastics | • 1978 |
| 1978 Edmonton | • lacrosse | |
| 1982 Brisbane | • Australian rules football • table tennis | • 2002 |
| 1986 Edinburgh | • judo | • 1990 |
| 1990 Auckland | • netball • triathlon | • 1998 • 2002 |
| 1994 Victoria | • para-athletics • para-swimming • para-lawn bowls | • 2002 • 2002 • 2002 |
| 1998 Kuala Lumpur | • sepak takraw • silambam • silat • wushu | |
| 2002 Manchester | (none) | |
| 2006 Melbourne | (none) | |
| 2010 Delhi | (none) | |
| 2014 Glasgow | (none) | |
| 2018 Gold Coast | (none) | |
| 2022 Birmingham | (none) | |
| 2026 Glasgow | (none) | |
| 2030 Ahmedabad | TBD | |
Related articles
This article is a child-friendly adaptation of the Wikipedia article on Demonstration sport, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.