Olympic dumping of baseball/softball
First off, in case you missed the comment to my recent blog on London landing the '12 Olympics, I'd like to thank John for sending a link to this London Olympics blog. I, for one, hope the Brits pull it off masterfully. My only suggestion: Don't skimp on the antiterrorism security measures.
Unfortunately, the International Olympic Committee has eliminated baseball and softball from the docket for 2012. Jemele Hill of the Orlando Sentinel makes a compelling case that Major League Baseball, not the IOC, blew it by not agreeing to take three weeks off in the middle of its season to send the world's top players to the Olympics and because of baseball's substandard drug-testing policy.
I don't disagree, but my cynicism cuts both ways. To drop baseball seems preposterous when you consider the huge growth of the sport elsewhere, particularly in Latin America and Asia. IOC prez Jacques Rogge pretty much says baseball and softball are too "Americanized" to be played on the world stage. According to mlb.com, though, there are now 122 world baseball federations, compared to 60 in 1990. About the only place the game hasn't caught on is Europe, which happens to dominate the IOC.
The good news is that baseball and softball could be back as early as 2016. In the meantime, enjoy that team handball.
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