Olympic wrestling clears one hurdle for 2020 Olympics

Although another hurdle remains, Olympic wrestling cleared a big one today in its quest to get back in the games.

At a meeting today in St. Petersburg, Russia, the International Olympic Committee’s executive board approved wrestling, as well as baseball/softball and squash, as finalists for the one remaining spot in the 2020 Summer Games. A final IOC vote is slated for September.

Wrestling surprisingly was axed from the Olympics back in February.

The snub prompted strong grass-roots and social-media efforts from the wrestling community, which also got a boost from the MMA world, including the UFC and a host of fighters. A handful of those MMA competitors, including UFC competitors Daniel Cormier and Dan Henderson, were Olympians before moving to MMA.

In fact, as MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) previously reported, Olympic wrestling may borrow some elements from MMA to spruce up live events and better its chances of returning to the Olympics. Possibilities include staged weigh-ins, walk-out music, lighting, visual effects and video screen replays.

With today’s vote, other sports including wushu, karate, roller sports, sport climbing and wakeboarding no longer will be considered for the 2020 Games.

Soon after February’s initial announcement, unlikely political allies – the U.S., Russia and Iran – joined forces and hosted showcase exhibitions to help the push.