<
>

Squash and tug of war battling for place at Tokyo Olympics

Richard Heathcote/Getty Images

Tug of war, frisbee throwing, bridge and tenpin bowling are among the sports applying for inclusion at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo.

A total of 26 different sports are hoping to feature in the Games, which will be the first to be held in Asia since the Beijing Olympics in 2008.

Baseball and softball, which are immensely popular in Japan, have high hopes of being included after they were omitted alongside squash in favour of wrestling in 2013 and rugby sevens and golf took the remaining places for the 2016 Games in Rio.

Snooker and korfball are also in the race, while chess and orienteering are two slightly more surprising options for the organisers to consider.

If tug of war was to make a return, Great Britain would be the defending champions, having won the gold at the 1920 Antwerp Olympics.

The 26 applicants will be narrowed down to a final shortlist by June 22, and an announcement will be made by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in August next year.

The existing infrastructure in Japan will play a part in the committee's decision, as will the sport's appeal to younger generations.

Yoshiro Mori, the head of the organising committee, said: "There are sports on this list that are not done in Japan, and we can't spend a lot of money on venues for these."

Other applicants include American football, billiards and sumo wrestling, which is seen as the sport most likely to generate substantial interest in the local community.

Thomas Bach, president of the IOC, said earlier this week: "We would like to see in the proposals also an event or events which are attractive to youth in particular. We think that this would be a win-win situation. It would give Japan the great opportunity to present itself to the world as a youthful nation looking to the future embracing youth and other cultures."