Squash, Cricket & 3 New Sports That We'll See At The LA28 Olympic Games
More gold medal opportunities for Malaysia?
By May Vin Ang β 14 Aug 2024, 03:20 PM
As the Paris Olympics comes to a close, attention for the next Olympics in Los Angeles, California, is already building
Five new sports will be added to the Los Angeles 2028 (LA28) Olympics programme β baseball/softball, cricket, flag football, lacrosse, and squash.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) had in 2023 approved the five sports proposed by the LA28 Organising Committee for their edition of the Games only.
For baseball/softball, cricket, and lacrosse, it will be a return to the Olympic Games, while flag football and squash will be making their Olympic debut in LA28
According to the official Olympics website, baseball had been played in several editions with the most recent being at the Tokyo 2020 Games, while cricket was last played in the Paris 1900 Games, and lacrosse was played in St Louis 1904 and London 1908.
"The choice of these five new sports is in line with the American sports culture and will showcase iconic American sports to the world, while bringing international sports to the United States. These sports will make the Olympic Games LA28 unique," said IOC President Thomas Bach.
"Their inclusion will allow the Olympic Movement to engage with new athlete and fan communities in the US and globally," he added.
Malaysia's number one female squash player Sivasangari Subramaniam created history by winning the 2024 London Squash Classic.
Image via @sangari_99 (X)The 2028 edition will be an exciting one for Malaysia as there may be more opportunities to win its first Olympic gold medal
Squash in Malaysia is synonymous with former world champion Datuk Nicol Ann David, who was world number one for a record-breaking 108 consecutive months from 2006 to 2015.
Her legacy continues through rising stars such as Sivasangari Subramaniam, who recently won her first-ever PSA World Tour Gold-level title at the 2024 London Squash Classics, and Ng Eain Yow, who also claimed his first World Tour title at the 2024 German Open in April.Meanwhile, cricket is also a growing sport in Malaysia, with the men's national team competing in the 2024 ICC Men's T20 World Cup Asia Qualifier, hosted in Malaysia this year.
