All the sports at Brisbane 2032 – and the ones still fighting for a spot

Tensions are growing as sports and their international federations jostle to be part of the Brisbane Olympic and Paralympic circus. SEE THE LIST

Little Breakers Lawson Mills, 7, Florence Mills, 8, and Rory Doyle, 9, from Mint Kids Hip Hop. Picture: Lachie Millard

Cricket, netball, lifesaving and breakdancing will have to bid their time.

The competition for places at the Brisbane Olympics and Paralympics is already heating up.

While there’s still nearly eight years to go before the Games get under way, tensions are already high because there are just not enough spots for everyone who desperately wants to be part of the biggest show in sport.

This story is part of The Courier-Mail’s annual Future Brisbane series advocating for a focus on the right legacy outcomes from the hosting of the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games. You can read all our coverage here

It’s not the athletes fighting for their places just yet, though that time will come soon enough.

What’s happening right now is that sports and their international federations are all jostling to be part of the Olympic and Paralympic circus.

About 30 sports will get the final tick of approval but almost just as many could get knocked back because the number of sports wanting to be involved at Brisbane in 2032 is off the charts.

That’s a major change from the past when each edition of an Olympics and Paralympics would be a carbon copy of the previous Games. Nowadays, new sports have a chance, while established sports no longer have a guaranteed place. Complacency is not an option any more.

Olympic table tennis player David Powell

It’s all part of a strategy to modernise the Games for younger viewers, by allowing host cities to make their own recommendations on which sports are included.

That means some traditional sports will get the axe while Millennials and Zoomers-friendly sports will get an invite, which partly explains why the French included break dancing in Paris but ditched baseball and softball.

Contrary to what most casual observers think, the list of sports for Brisbane 2032 hasn’t been decided yet, not by a long shot, even though the elbowing for places in the queue has kicked off.

While the bulk of sports are expected to be locked in within the next 12-24 months, the final program may not be decided until after the next Games at Los Angeles in 2028.

That means a nervous wait for sports like cricket, but organisers say there’s no need for anyone to fret because this is not Queensland falling behind schedule.

This is actually the new norm for hosting the Games as Andrew Liveris, president of the Brisbane 2032 Organising Committee President, told this masthead.

Australian BMX rider Natalya Diehm in action in Paris

“The Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games Organising Committee (Brisbane 2032) is in the fortunate position of experiencing two Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games sport programs take place before 2032, while at the same time working to develop our own program,” he said.

“The Paris 2024 sport program was an incredible success, drawing huge crowds and receiving widespread praise from athletes. We are also learning from LA28 on how they developed their program, including their additional sports.”

Awarded the Games in 2021, Brisbane has always had the luxury of extra time on its side, but while Queensland organisers will make their own recommendations, the final decision on which sports make the cut will ultimately be made by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the International Paralympic Committee (IPC).

But there are some clues.

As part of its initial bid and subsequent contract signing, Brisbane did propose an indicative program, based on the same initial plans for Paris.

All the following sports that were included are expected to be rubber-stamped within the next two years.

BRISBANE 2032 OLYMPIC SPORTS

Aquatics (swimming, marathon swimming, diving, water polo, artistic swimming)

Archery

Athletics

Badminton

Basketball (basketball, 3 x 3)

Boxing

Canoe (sprint, slalom)

Cycling (BMX freestyle, BMX racing, mountain bike, road, track)

Equestrian

Fencing

Football

Golf

Gymnastics (artistic, rhythmic, trampoline)

Handball

Hockey

Judo

Modern pentathlon

Rowing

Rugby Sevens

Sailing

Shooting

Table tennis

Taekwondo

Tennis

Triathlon

Volleyball (Beach Volleyball, Volleyball)

Weightlifting

Wrestling

LA 2028 SPORTS THAT WANT TO STAY

T20 Cricket

Squash

Baseball/softball

Lacrosse

Flag football

Skateboarding

SPORTS THAT WANT IN FOR 2032

Netball

Lifesaving

Breakdancing

Flying disc

Rugby league

E-sports

Trail running

Pickleball

Karate

Originally published as All the sports at Brisbane 2032 – and the ones still fighting for a spot