Is Karate In The 2024 Summer Olympics?
It was announced that karate will not be among the sports included in the 2024 Summer Olympic Games in Paris. This decision caught many Olympic sports fans off guard. After historically being excluded from the Olympics, Karate finally made its first appearance in the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. Karate included mens and womens events for both kumite and kata in 2020, with around 80 competitors in total. However, to the surprise of many, karate will again not be recognized as an Olympic sport for the following 2024 Olympics. The Olympic Committee has not yet elaborated on the reasoning behind karate’s exclusion in 2024.
Controversy
The decision by the Olympic Committee to exclude karate yet again sparked controversy in the combat sport and martial arts communities. A very large population of dedicated karate fans and participants believe karate is absolutely worthy of being included in the Olympics. It certainly meets all the requirements for being an Olympic sport, considering it made its inaugural appearance in the 2020 Summer Olympics. It is a bit peculiar that karate is being removed from Olympic recognition so quickly after being added to the worldwide event. Several groups are attempting to petition the Olympics to change their decision and include karate in the 2024 Olympics in Paris.
FAQ
What sport will replace karate in the 2024 Summer Olympics?
There isn’t necessarily a direct indicator to say what sport took karate’s spot leading up to the 2024 Summer Olympics, as it was not the only sport removed from the Olympic itinerary following the completion of the 2020 Olympics. Going into the 2024 Olympics, the only new sport set to be added for the events in France is breakdancing. That being said, baseball will also not be included in the next Summer Olympics so it would be inaccurate to say that karate was necessarily “traded out” for breakdancing.
Why was karate added to the 2020 Olympics?
A large part of why karate was featured in the 2020 Olympics was a result of the history it holds in the host country: Japan. Karate is an ancient martial art, with over 700 years of history. The combat sport was developed and matured in Japan, making it a natural choice to add for the Olympics held in Tokyo as a display of Japanese culture.
What countries won gold medals for karate in the 2020 Summer Olympics?
In the 2020 Summer Olympic Games held in Tokyo, Japan, there were a total of eight karate events. There were six events for kumite, the sparring discipline, which were divided into three weight classes for both men and women. For the solo form discipline, kata, there was one event for men and one event for women. Of the total 37 countries that participated, eight of them took home a gold medal. Interestingly, each country only took home one gold medal at most, with four countries receiving silver or bronze medals as well. In kumite for men, France won the 67kg competition, Italy won the 75kg competition, and Iran won the +75kg competition. For women, the gold medal winners in kumite are as follows: Bulgaria won gold in 55kg, Serbia won gold in 61kg, and Egypt won gold in +61kg. The home country Japan took home the gold for the men’s kata performance and Spain won the gold in women’s kata.