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24/7 Insights
- Several new sports have been added to the Paris 2024 Summer Games lineup.
- New sports include Kayak Cross, Sport Climbing, and Breakdancing.
- New games are already being added to the 2026 Winter Olympics and 2028 Summer Olympics.
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Every time the Olympic Games come around, there is a chance for a new event. While it takes many years for the International Olympic Committee to approve new events, when it does, it’s usually for all the right reasons. This is even more true when you consider the 1900 Summer Olympics, also held in Paris, only had around 19 sports and 1,226 competitors.
Fast-forward to Paris 2024, and you have 10,714 athletes participating in 329 events from 32 different sports. This equals 48 separate disciplines, a massive leap from where the Olympic Games were 124 years ago. With this in mind, we can look at information from NBC Olympics and the official Olympics website to see the newest events in no particular order and even throw in a new event or two coming to the next Winter Olympics in 2026.
Why Is This Important?
The Olympics are the most popular sporting event in the world.
The Olympic Games are the most important sporting event for many athletes and only occur every four years. With billions of dollars invested by the host cities for what is essentially two weeks of main activities, the Olympics are the eyes of the world for those 14 or so days. Billions of dollars in sponsorships are also part of these games, including significant funds from brands like Pepsi, Coca-Cola, Toyota, Samsung, and many others we regularly cover on 24/7 Wall St.
12. Mixed Team Events
Mixed teams luge is one of the new events coming to the 2026 Winter Olympics.
- Type of event: Various mixed events
A few additions will be made to an updated lineup of Olympic events in 2026. These include additions to preexisting events, including men’s and women’s dual mogul freestyle skiing. Women’s doubles will replace the open doubles event in Luge, which was previously a male-only event. Ski jumping will introduce a women’s large downhill event, and Skeleton will add a mixed-team event.
11. Ski Mountaineering
Ski Mountaineering will be one of the newest and most grueling Olympic events.
- Type of event: Skiing endurance event
A new Winter Olympic event coming to Milano Cortina in 2026, Ski Mountaineering, will frequently be called “skimo.” In this event, competitors must climb uphill and ski downhill while carrying their equipment. The ascent will cover over 2,000 meters, plus the additional impact of the mountain’s elevation. Competitors can use ice axes, ropes, survival blankets, snow probes, avalanche detectors, and harnesses and be outfitted with rubber membranes to prevent them from sliding down a mountain and potentially being injured.
10. 3x3 Basketball
Three-on-three basketball is already very popular.
- Type of event: Half-court basketball
One of the most popular forms of basketball today, 3x3 Basketball, made its Olympic debut at the Tokyo Summer Olympics. Drawing big fans cheering on various countries, the game’s success helped bring it to Paris 2024. Each team has three players on the court at once to have more points at the end of 10 minutes or score 21 points before the other team. A three-point line shot is worth two points in this basketball format, while every other basket is worth one point. There is no question that this type of basketball requires just as much strategy and skill as the more traditional 5x5 basketball game.
9. Cricket
Cricket is one of the world's most popular sports.
- Type of event: Batters and Fielders
One of the most popular sports in the world, Cricket, is set to return to the Summer Olympics in 2028. Taking a bit of a lesson from global play, the Olympics will introduce Cricket as a Twenty20 - 20 overs per side, which is the newest and most popular format of cricket being played globally. Each cricket team will have 11 players on the “batting” side, while another team of 11 is on the “fielding" side. The batter team scores by hitting a ball and running to the other end of the pitch or field with their partner going in the opposite direction.
8. World Lacrosse Sixes
Lacrosse is a sport that is on the cusp of the Olympic agenda.
- Type of event: Stick and ball
After last appearing in the 1908 Olympics, Lacrosse will potentially enter the Olympic world in Los Angeles in 2028. The game has been billed as a faster-paced yet more compact version of the more traditional Lacrosse games worldwide today. It’s yet to be determined if the game will be formally allowed as part of the 2028 games, but it remains proposed to the IOC, which is set to decide on the games list soon.
7. Squash
You'll see Squash in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
- Type of event: Racket sport
Coming up in Los Angeles 2028 will be Squash, which is a racket sport that has been played in clubs for decades. Usually played by two people on a rectangular court enclosed by four walls, Squash ensures that safety glass allows spectators to watch every step of the action. Squash was first played in the 18th century and has become a global sport that feels like a tennis offshoot. Each match will have two players, and the winner will be determined by who wins the most rallies and scores 11 points until three games have been won.
6. Flag Football
Flat football is a sport to watch in 2028.
- Type of event: No-contact American football
Flag football will be making its Olympic debut in Los Angeles in 2028. Unlike traditional American football, Flag Football requires players to remove fabric “flags” attached to a ball carrier’s waist. Two flags are on each participant's waist, and the third is worn on the back. The rules will be played with five players on each team on the field out of a 12-person squad. Each game will consist of two 20-minute halves, and play stops once a flag is removed from the ball carrier. There is little question the US will be heavy gold-medal favorites.
5. Sport Climbing
Sport climbing is one of the best new sports in Paris 2024.
- Type of event: Speed-based rock climbing
Building on the success of sports like rock climbing, Sport Climbing is making its second appearance after Tokyo. However, Sport Climbing will look slightly different across men's and women's categories this time. In the Tokyo games, you had a combined score for athletes, including three separate scores. This time, Sport Climbing has been broken into two competitions: a combined lead and bouldering event and a separate speed event. The speed event has climbers racing across a familiar course, while the bouldering course will be updated with every run, requiring new strategies every time.
4. Skateboarding
Skateboarding is an Olympic event appealing to multiple age groups.
- Type of event: Park and street events
Like its introduction in Tokyo in 2021, skateboarding is making its second appearance in the Summer Olympics. Throughout the games, skateboarding is divided into two events: Park and Street events. In the Park event, skateboarders perform a variety of tricks inside a curved arena similar to what many people know as a skatepark. Street skateboarding is precisely like it sounds as the skateboarders will perform events on courses filled with challenges you might see on a traditional urban street.
3. Breakdancing
Breakdancing is one of the most visible new Paris 2024 events.
- Type of event: Best of three one-on-one contests
While breakdancing is debuting at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, it’s not set to return for the 2028 Los Angeles Games. However, there is a chance that if the event goes well, the game could reappear in 2032, especially when you consider that international competitions have been taking place since the 1990s. Currently, 16 men and 16 women will compete in a round-robin event, followed by quarterfinals, semifinals, and medal battles. Each dance lasts approximately one minute, and the dancers do not know the music beforehand.
2. Kayak Cross
Kayak Cross is a combination event simulating white water kayaking.
- Type of event: New discipline of canoeing
While canoeing at the Olympics is not new, Kayak Cross is a brand new event that will be introduced in Paris in 2024. Instead of the traditional race in a calm body of water, Kayak Cross involves whitewater rapids and plenty of obstacles. Not only will athletes have to compete against the clock, but they will also be in the water against other competitors. Any competitor who misses one of the “gates” or obstacles is immediately disqualified. Among the necessary steps is a kayak roll or a complete 360-degree flip in the water and coming back up.
1. Surfing
Surfing is the only Paris 2024 Olympic event not taking place in France.
- Type of event: Surfing on water
Making its second appearance at the Summer Olympics, Surfing is returning, having made its first appearance in Tokyo in 2020. Unfortunately, as France isn’t home to suitable types of waves, athletes competing in this competition will be in Tahiti for the duration of the event. For four days, athletes will compete against the best in the world alongside some of the world’s most dangerous waves. Five judges will do the scoring, giving each surfer a score of 0.1 - 10.
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