The Executive Committee of the International Olympic Committee during the Session in Singapore decided not to introduce an all-team standings at the Olympic Games. IOC President Jacques Rogge explained this decision by the reluctance to create a precedent for discussions about the significance of the merits of medals, or of one or another sport.
For example, in some countries the count is based on the number of gold awards, while in small ones - on all awards, explained Rogge. Thus, all medal counts in the all-team standings, adopted in the media, will continue to be considered unofficial.
At the ongoing Session of the IOC in Singapore on Friday, a vote of IOC members on the Olympic program will take place. For the first time since 1936, the exclusion of a sport may occur, in place of which one of five disciplines will be proposed, while the total number will remain the same - 28. The last sport that was excluded from the Olympic Games was polo - in 1936.
On July 8, a vote will be held on all 28 sports currently included in the Olympic program. A sport that receives 51 percent of the votes retains its representation. The results will be made public only after the secret voting on all sports is completed. The vote was preceded by three years of work on evaluating the sports, which resulted in the publication on June 13 of a 265-page report by the IOC commission.
In the event of the exclusion of at least one sport, a decision on including new disciplines will be made on July 9. Five sports are competing for the right to be included in the program - golf, karate, squash, rugby-7, roller sports. It is assumed that in the event of the exclusion of a team sport, golf or rugby-7 will be considered, an indoor sport - squash or roller sports, one of the martial arts - karate.
As ITAR-TASS learned from unofficial sources, London's victory in the competition for the right to host the 2012 Games strengthened the position of rugby-7, which is quite popular in Great Britain. Indirect confirmation of this could be found in the press center: on one of the information tables, brochures of the International Rugby Union appeared with a detailed description of this sport.