Olympic dreams grounded for flying disc

The World Flying Disc Federation (WFDF) was left “surprised and disappointed” after the sport was effectively eliminated for consideration from the LA28 Summer Olympics.

Reports emerged last week that nine sports had been shortlisted for consideration by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the LA28 Organizing Committee.

Breaking, cricket, baseball/softball, flag football, lacrosse, karate, kickboxing, squash and motorsport were among those to receive a request for information according to cricket outlet cricbuzz.

WFDF President Robert “Nob” Rauch released a statement upon learning of the reports, which read, “WFDF is surprised and disappointed to not have been included in the shortlist of potential additional sports invited to submit a proposal for inclusion in the 2028 Olympic Program.”

“Flying Disc sports is actively practiced on a competitive level in 103 countries in the world and appeared to satisfy all of the objective criteria agreed between the IOC and LA28,” claimed Rauch.

Youth appeal, total gender equality, ensuring the participation of top athletes, and cost effective venue use were among the criteria cited in his comments.

Flying disc, also known as ultimate frisbee, is unique among team sports in the Olympic Games as it is traditionally played in a mixed gender format. A condensed version of the sport, labeled Ultimate 4′s, was put forth for inclusion in the Games.

The proposal called for matches played by four member teams, utilizing two 18 minute halves. The format was reportedly adaptable for play on both grass and beach surfaces. Each qualified country would have been entitled to send a team of six members split evenly between men and women.

Rauch continued to advocate for the sport in his statement, arguing, “there are few other sports that can boast an equivalent Californian DNA as frisbee and we felt our Ultimate 4s format requiring a total athletes’ quota of only 48 would fit well given the overall cap on the Games.”

Flying disc is played widely at the university and club level in California. The state is also home to three professional teams associated with the American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL). It remains unclear why the sport was left off the shortlist of potential additions for the LA28 Summer Olympics.

Despite the setback, Rauch vowed to continue growing the sport internationally. He stated, “we at WFDF will move on and continue to develop our sport on a global scale and will work to ensure that we are as interesting to the organizers as possible when decisions about the Program for the 2032 Olympic Games in Brisbane are being made.”

Flying disc featured at The World Games 2022 earlier this summer, where the United States saw off Australia in the gold medal match. The sport will likely face equally stiff competition for a spot on the sports program of the Brisbane 2032 Summer Olympic Games.