Golf awaits International Olympic Committee’s decision

October 9th, 2009 - 3:15 pm ICT by Aishwarya Bhatt  

A Golf Course Copenhagen, Oct 9 (THAINDIAN NEWS) The leisure sport Golf is expected to be confirmed as Olympic sports and included in the games line up for the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro on Friday.

The International Olympic Committee’s executive board decided and even voted in favor of golf and rugby too at a meeting two months ago in include them in the games line-up.

But their recommendation must be officially notified and stamped by all the 106 IOC members at a congress in Copenhagen, before it can take effect.

Gilbert Felli, the IOC’s executive director of Olympic Games, said: “We don’t have any demonstration sports any more so we don’t see either golf or rugby being demonstration sports in London.”

Australian golfer Peter Thomson, the winner of five Open Championships said: “I don’t know what the IOC [International Olympic Committee] council expects. They can’t have an event to rival the Open. We have our Olympics every year. I don’t think we should be in it. The motive is that countries like China won’t put money in unless golf is an Olympic sport. I think it’s a very doubtful reason.”

“I’d love to be an Olympian. Doesn’t that sound good?” Harrington enthused when the Executive Board recommended golf to the IOC in August. “Imagine being an Olympic athlete.”

In time, he believes the Olympics can become “the fifth Major” and maybe “the premier event in golf”.

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