Non-Olympic Sports Included At Pan American Games

Since there are two criteria according to which the Pan American Sports Committee determines what sports will be part of the Pan American Games there was several sports that were part of the Pan American Games but that are not included in the program of the Olympic Games. The following part of this article will provide the list of several non-Olympic sports that have become the part of the Pan American Games.

Baseball (Softball)

softballTo a surprise of many people from the Americas, baseball is not part of the program in Olympic Games yet. However that will most likely change in 2020 when baseball might become the Olympic sport. The reason for that is that baseball was not popular for a long time outside of the Americas. In regards to the Pan American Games, baseball and softball are part of the program in Pan American Games for some time now.

In 2019 Pan American Games, baseball and softball will be one of the main events and one of the events that will grab the most attention from the fans just like it was the case with last several Pan American Games. In the last Pan American Games, Canada won gold medal, United States won silver medal while Cuba won bronze in the baseball tournament. In the softball tournament, Unites States won gold, Canada silver and Venezuela won bronze medal.

Bowling

bowlingBowling is also one of the non-Olympic sports that have been trying to become the Olympic Sport for quite some time now. During the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul, bowling was introduced as a demonstration sport in an effort for an Olympic Committee to research the popularity of the sport. However, since then, bowling was never fully introduced to the Olympic Games but that might change with the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo.

However, bowling has been a part of the Pan American Games for quite some time now. At the 2015 Pan American Games, four events in two categories (men and women) were held. During the 2015 Pan American Games, Brazil won gold, Venezuela silver and Canada/United States won bronze medal in men’s singles competition. On the other hand, in women’s singles competition, United States won gold, Dominican Republic won silver and United States/Colombia won bronze medal.

Squash

squashOne of the sports that was amazingly popular in the Americas but that did not gained much attention in the rest of the world is squash. However, that is changing during the last several years. It gained so much popularity that it even being considered to be a serious contender to become the new Olympic sport at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. During the 2015 Pan American Games, 56 competitors from 13 different nations participate in the squash tournament.

There were six events in two categories (three in men’s category and three in women’s). At those games, Colombia won gold, Peru won silver and Canada/Mexico won bronze medal in men’s singles while Canada won gold, Mexico won silver and Argentina/United States won bronze medal in men’s team competitions. In women’s competition, United States won gold as well as silver and Canada/Mexico won bronze medal in women’s singles while United States won gold, Canada silver and Mexico/Colombia won bronze medal in women’s team competition.

Other Non-Olympic Sports

paddle-ballBesides the already mentioned non-Olympic sports that are part of the Pan American Games for some time now there are several other that were and still are included in the program of the Pan American Games. One of such sports is Racquetball. Racquetball is a combination of paddleball and a string racket. Pan American Sports Committee has included this sport in the program of the Pan American Games because of its popularity in the Americas and not because it is a part of the Olympic program.

Other non-Olympic sports that have been featured in the Pan American Games include also roller sports such as Figure Skating and Speed Skating. The International Roller Sports Federation (FIRS) has made several attempts to become the part of the Olympic Games but that attempt was not successful. The biggest surprise in regards to the non-Olympic sport is the karate. Karate has not been featured in Olympic Games but will probably change in 2020 when Tokyo will host the Olympic Games. However, karate is for some time now a part of the Pan American Games due to its increasing popularity.