Inspired by Beijing's success in bidding for the 2008 Olympics,
Wushu, China's traditional sport, has filed its official
application to be added to the Olympic program.
Li
Zhijian, President of the International
Wushu Federation (IWF), sent a letter recently to Jacques
Rogge, President of the International Olympic Committee
(IOC), expressing the sport's wish to be included in the Olympic
Games, the IWF Secretariat told Xinhua on Friday.
"On behalf of the IWF and all the Wushu players, I apply for the
sport to be included in the Olympic program," said Li in the
letter.
Li
said that in the past century people with various cultural
background in the world have taken fancy to the sport, which has
strong flavor of time-honored Chinese culture.
"If Wushu can join other Olympic sports in the 2008 Olympics, it
will contribute to the variety of the world culture and help spread
the Olympic Movement," said Li.
The sport has made its first step on the road to joining the
Olympics program as the IWF earned the temporary recognition of the
IOC in 1999.
By
November, 2001, the IWF has expanded to a world body with 86 member
associations in all the five continents, meeting the IOC 's
requirement that a candidate sport should be popular enough to be
practiced in a minimum of 75 countries of at least four
continents.
"The IWF has been consistent in its efforts to develop the sport so
that it could be added to the Olympic program, "said Li.
Though outside the door of the Olympic Games, Wushu has been a
medal sport in the Asian Games since 1990 and held six world
championships in China, Malaysia, the United States, Italy, Armenia
and Hong Kong, China, since 1991.
One hindrance for IWF's efforts is that the IOC is trying to
control the size of the Games, which has grown to 28 sports and
about 300 disciplines, while many other sports are knocking on the
door of the Olympics.
Gilbert Felli, sports director of the IOC, ever said that it will
be difficult for new sports to be admitted to the Olympics but the
"door is not completely closed". The IOC will make final decision
on the sports program of the 2008
Olympic Games at its session in November.
( December 29, 2001)