RUGBY LEAGUE is being strongly backed to be played at the 2032 Olympics – although in what form remains to be decided.
The sport has never before been a part of the Games but that could change when Brisbane plays host in seven years’ time.
While there are many ‘core’ sports which must feature at the Olympics, up to six optional sports can also be added.
These are proposed by the organising committee, usually to improve local interest.
And Queensland’s minister for sport, Tim Mander, has confirmed that his government wants Rugby League to be one of those sports.
Mander, a former NRL referee who took charge of the 2004 and 2005 Grand Finals, publicly backed moves as Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium hosts Magic Round.
“One of the abilities we have is to introduce new sports into the Games. That process is happening over the next twelve months and those decisions will be made then,” Mander said.
“What often happens is that it is a sport that may be localised in the country where the games are being held, and Rugby League is definitely up there as one of our major sports.”
It will almost certainly not be the full 13-a-side version, due to limits on the number of athletes across the Games as a whole.
The International Rugby League have put their support behind Nines, in which it hosted a major tournament in Sydney in 2019.
But now touch football is also now being mooted in Australia as an option.
Touch, which was first codified down under in the 1960s, is played with modified rules to limit contact, on a smaller-sized pitch with six players per side and over 40 minutes.
Its governing body, the Federation of International Touch, announced last year an intention to pursue the sport’s inclusion as a mixed-gender event.
Other sports to have declared an interest in a place at the 2032 Olympics include cricket, baseball/softball and netball.
Rugby sevens, a shortened form of rugby union, has been on the Olympic menu as a core sport since 2016. The 15-a-side code last featured in 1924.
The programme of events for Brisbane will be determined by the International Olympic Committee next year.
The IRL also maintain an ambition to see Wheelchair Rugby League included in the 2032 Paralympics.
A sport called wheelchair rugby, formerly known as murderball, has been in the Games since 2000 but does not originate from rugby.
