IOC approves five sports for Los Angeles 2028

Five sports, including cricket and flag football, proposed for inclusion at the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics were approved by the International Olympic Committee executive board on Friday, leaving them with one last hurdle to seal their Olympic spots.

Organisers of the LA 2028 Games said this week they wanted cricket, flag football, lacrosse, squash and baseball-softball added to the event.

Each host city, under IOC rules approved a few years ago, can request the inclusion of several sports for their edition of the Games.

"These proposals have been accepted as a package by the IOC Executive Board," IOC president Thomas Bach told a press conference at the end of the executive board meeting.

"Taking into consideration that these proposals and these sports are fully in line with the sports culture of our hosts in 2028, with the American sports culture, they will showcase iconic American sports to the world while bringing at the same time international sports to the United States."

The IOC session, starting on Sunday, will now have to rubberstamp the board's recommendation.

Cricket is set for an Olympic return after appearing once at the 1900 Games.

The Los Angeles Games proposal is for a six-team Twenty20 tournament for men and women.

The IOC board also recommended the inclusion of modern pentathlon, after the international federation replaced horse riding with an obstacle running course following a scandal at the Tokyo 2021 Olympics.

Weightlifting also secured its Olympic spot for Los Angeles after changes were made to its anti-doping testing procedures, among other things.

Both sports had been provisionally left out of the LA Games.

While all five new sports' inclusion is only for one edition of the Games, they are banking on