The grand global sports celebration is kicking off today for three weeks of intense Olympic competition in the race for precious metal medals.
France hadn’t hosted this festivities in 100 years and on this same year 1924 founded the French baseball federation. Yet the two sports (Baseball and Softball) won’t be featured in Paris due to the French Olympic Committee’s refusal to propose these sports as additions, unlike the Japanese in Tokyo in 2020/21.
Let’s briefly revisit the French sports authorities’ refusal, which was based on the number of athletes becoming too high. After the fact, those who made the decision lied about this reason as they simply didn’t want to schedule a sport they deemed un-French. Yet bat-and-ball sports were played in France as early as the 12th century! French high-level sports hegemony is so strong that it can ignore the fact that the Olympic Games represent a global practice, not just a French one. Many global Olympic and baseball supporters can’t comprehend this decision, especially since they represent more than half the planet. Of course, France wouldn’t have brought home a medal in either baseball or softball. Baseball5 would have been a different story, but let’s console ourselves as this sport will be featured at the 2026 Youth Olympic Games in Dakar.
In 2028, Los Angeles will bring baseball and softball back into the Olympic fold. This simple decision forced the French National Olympic Committee to reinstate baseball, softball, and cricket as core sports (Olympic Sport List 1) after removing them for nearly two years as non-Olympic sports. It’s an outrage still largely unacceptable from French sports authorities. In Australia in 2032 and India in 2036, baseball, softball, and cricket will likely be on the program, which, according to IOC rules, should make these sports mainstays after three consecutive appearances, not just additions.
To console ourselves, we’ve seen some personalities from the French baseball world who had the privilege of being torchbearers. Athletes, coaches, presidents… Aurélie Bacelon, Miriam Romero, Didier Seminet in photos below…
Let’s not spoil our fun by being spectators of the fantastic spectacle that are the Olympic Games, whether by managing to get into the stands or by watching peacefully at home on our TVs. Let’s not hold onto that bitter taste of seeing the French sports community once again « snub » our favorite sports for too long.
