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Billiards in the Olympics
AS the 2008 Olympic Games unfold in all their excitement and glory in Beijing this August, not a few pool players and enthusiasts have wondered in frustration why pool and other billiard sports are not part of the competition. Why are the best in our sport not taking their bows on the global stage like Michael Phelps in swimming or Kobe Bryant in basketball? Why can’t we be enthralled also by the exploits of our sports heroes and heroines? And why are our pool-crazy countries not being rewarded their fair share of Olympic gold?
The answer to these frustrating questions is that billiards is not yet deemed worthy of being officially invited into the huge Olympic tent. While billiards in its various forms was officially given recognition by the Olympic system in 1998, the fight for its inclusion in the games themselves is still ongoing. And the latest word is that in two more coming Olympics – till 2016 – our frustrations will not be ending yet.
According to Ian Anderson, president of the World Pool-Billiard Association (WPA), the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has officially given notice that billiards will not be part of the 2016 Olympic Games. It’s not one of the new sports being considered for induction into the competition. That distinction has been granted to five other sports -- karate, squash, roller sports, golf and rugby -- along with baseball and softball which currently already hold Olympic status. Two of these sports will most likely be included on the 2016 Olympics program.
The news is most disappointing to all of us in the international billiards community. But the fight for a place in the Olympics will continue. And the next target will be a seat in the 2020 Olympics, wherever that will be.
In consolation, as international billiard officials keep saying, billiards at least already enjoys official recognition within the Olympic system. It’s just that inclusion in the competition program is one long tedious process. The games, as they are now, are already overloaded with many sport disciplines. For any new sport to get in, another sport has to give way. And that’s a very tall order.
History of Billiards Lobby
The lobby for billiards’ inclusion in the Olympics date as far back as the 1950s. But the early effort was scattered and unfocused, so much that it could not even get beyond the front door. Not only did billiards have difficulty complying with the definition of sports under the Olympic Charter, but the IOC also demanded that only one organization represent all billiard sports in the discussion, and there were many organizations talking all at the same time.
The lobby could not make any headway until 1992 when the World Confederation for Billiard Sports (WCBS) was formed. To satisfy the IOC’s condition of single representation, the representatives of the three main billiard sports -- Carom, Pool and Snooker -- convened for a historic meeting in Bristol, England in August 1990. It was there that they decided to form the WCBS as an umbrella organization encompassing all kinds of billiards. They came up with a set of by-laws that enabled all three billiard divisions to work closely together, while still maintaining their respective independence.
The WCBS held its inaugural General Assembly in Lausanne, Switzerland in January 1992. A nine-man board was elected, with three representatives each from the founding members: Union Mondiale de Billard (UMB – Carom), World Pool-Billiard Association (WPA –Pool) and World Snooker Federation (WSF – Snooker). Thus did the campaign for possible IOC recognition begin.
With the WCBS in the lead, key achievements and milestones have been recorded:
• In October 1995, the WCBS was granted membership by the General Association of International Sports Federations (GAISF), a distinction that means a lot to the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
• In July 1996, the IOC granted the WCBS provisional recognition for two years,
• In September 1996, the WCBS became a member of the Association of Recognised International Sports Federations (ARISF).
• On February 5, 1998, the IOC finally granted full recognition to the WCBS, which meant in part that billiard sports would be treated henceforth as one sport
• In late1998, the International World Games Association (IWGA) decided to include billiard sports into the program of the 2001 Akita World Games, with four medals to be competed for in carom, pool and snooker. Following the inclusion of billiard sports in the World Games, the lobby then focused on getting billiards into the program of the Olympic Games. It’s now seven years since we joined the World Games, but the dream of moving on into the Olympics continues to elude our sport.
What We Do Now
With 2016 out of the realm of possibility, I think the time has come for a more concerted to get billiards into the 2020 Olympics. And the time to begin this is now.
Although the official process appears to call for patient plodding and pleading within the Olympic system, we cannot leave this effort alone in the hands of the WCBS. We all have to do our share. Olympic officialdom will pay more attention if the entire international billiards community join the campaign, and if the campaign is more spirited and noisy. It’s time for everyone to know how big billiard sports – especially pool – really is in the planet.
Just how big is our sport?
Surveys have repeatedly shown that billiards has one of the highest participation rates among all sports. This significantly means that as many people play the sport as those who watch it. Most sports, like boxing and wrestling, are more to-be-watched than participatory. If in the Philippines, we have five million billiard players (according to an official survey), there must be easily over a hundred million all over the world who play billiards. This high degree of people participation in our sport should count for something in the Olympic calculus.
Second, billiards is global. While certain Olympic sports are just the specialty and passion of a few countries – like fencing and archery – billiards is indisputably a global sport. Arabs play billiards as avidly as Europeans, Americans and Asians. The Chinese and the Indians, who between them number 2.5 billion, have taken up the sport in a big way. Nowhere is this more palpable and visible than in the WPA world championship events. Name any continent and region of the world and you will find scores of eager and accomplished players.
Third, if a direct comparison were to be made between billiards and other sports already in the Olympic program, our sport will doubtless emerge as way, way more popular and exciting. Olympic officialdom should be made to realize that by adding billiards into the competition, it will whip up more spectator interest, more excitement and more competitiveness.
The point is we need to make a stronger case for the inclusion of billiards in the Olympics. And the way to do this is to bring out the trumpet, spread the word, get the media more involved, and catch people’s attention.
The 2020 Olympics is a good target to aim for because the next five to 10 years will be a period of dynamic growth for billiards, especially for pool. Asia and the Middle East are emerging as the new hotbed of our sport. All over Europe, the EPBF and its member associations are finding more players and fans eager to support events. The US is getting re-energized by the new eagerness of the Billiard Congress of America to lead and the hunger of Americans to be champions again. And more and bigger international tournaments are being held as pool is catching more interest from sponsors.
In sum, the demographics of billiards is great. Fan and player interest is well-spread across the world. And we are a sunrise sport that is growing, not contracting, with every passing year.
If we shout the news, Olympic officialdom will hear us. And who knows, maybe the doors will finally open.
Why would I need or even want to explain to you that archery is a highly athletic and fast sport when first of all I don't think archery is a highly athletic and fast sport and when in the second place I have never in any case suggested or implied that archery is a highly athletic and fast sport?
