Buenos Aires, Argentina (September 8, 2013) – In the first stage of the International Olympic Committee General Assembly meeting on Sunday, September 8, the IOC members approved the recommendation of the IOC Executive Committee of the 25 core sports for the 2020 Olympics.
     
In the recommendation of IOC Executive Committee, wrestling was not included in the 25 core sports.
     
Wrestling has another opportunity today to remain on the Olympic program as a provisional sport for the 2020 and 2024 Olympic Games. At approximately 12:00 noon in Buenos Aires, the IOC will vote for one more berth on the Olympic program, selecting between wrestling, squash and the combined baseball/softball bid. This path for wrestling to retain its Olympic status as a provisional sport was expected to be the sport’s best chance to achieve its goal.

“It was accepted and expected that the IOC would approve the recommendation for the 25 core sports. An IOC Executive Board recommendation is rarely overturned and wrestling has not actively been attempting to overturn that recommendation. We are not surprised at all and expected this,” said Bill Scherr, Chairman of USA Wrestling’s Committee for the Preservation of Olympic Wrestling (CPOW).

“The IOC has given wrestling a path to remain on the Olympic program. We have been placing our efforts on the vote for the final provisional sport position in the 2020 and 2024 Olympics, where we are competing with squash and the baseball/softball bid. We go into this presentation well prepared. If we are successful in our bid to be a provisional sport, we will work for the core sport status later on,” said Scherr.

Wrestling makes its presentation to the IOC General Assembly for the provisional sport position at 11:30 a.m. in Buenos Aires (which is one hour ahead of U.S. Eastern time). The presenters are FILA President Nenad Lalovic (Serbia), Jim Scherr (USA), Carol Huynh (Canada), Daniel Igali (Nigeria/Canada) and Lise LeGrand (France).

The vote on the three provisional sport candidates is schedule for 12:00 noon in Buenos Aires, with the announcement on that vote expected within an hour.

ABOUT USA WRESTLING
USA Wrestling is the National Governing Body for the Sport of Wrestling in the United States and, as such, is its representative to the United States Olympic Committee and the International Wrestling Federation FILA. Simply, USA Wrestling is the central organization that coordinates amateur wrestling programs in the nation and works to create interest and participation in these programs. Its president is James Ravannack, and its Executive Director is Rich Bender.
 
ABOUT CPOW
The Committee for the Preservation of Olympic Wrestling (CPOW) was developed by USA Wrestling, whose mission is to insure that wrestling remains as a core sport of the Olympic Games. CPOW features many highly-respected leaders within the American wrestling, chaired by Bill Scherr of Glenview, Ill., a World champion and Olympic medalist in freestyle wrestling and a leader in the Olympic family.