PARIS, France — Pickleball seems to have taken the world by storm recently, but it's still not in the Olympics. Why? Two of the biggest hindrances are lack of official recognition and timing.
One key issue for any sport wanting to join the Olympics is limited international popularity. The Olympic threshold requires sports to be "widely practiced by men in at least 75 countries and on four continents and by women in no fewer than 40 countries and on three continents," according to Britannica.
But once pickleball reaches that standard, it has another hurdle to overcome: the International Olympic Committee (IOC) must recognize a sport's international federation before that sport is added to the Olympic program. There is an International Pickleball Federation, but it is not on the list of IOC-recognized federations. The IPF was created in 2023, though it's predecessor was founded in 2016.
The IPF appears to have 78 member countries listed, though different sections of its website give varying numbers, such as 77 and 73.
Another requirement to be considered for the Olympics is that "only sports which comply with the Olympic Charter, the World Anti-Doping Code and the Olympic Movement Code on the Prevention of the Manipulation of Competition are eligible to be in the programme," according to the Olympics website.
According to the Olympic Charter, the list of sports included in each Olympic Games is determined seven years before the Opening Ceremony or when the host is determined, whichever comes later. Host cities have been announced through 2034.
The next announcements for future host cities will come prior to the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy. Should other requirements be met, pickleball could be added to the roster for the 2036 summer games or any other future games.
However, "Upon proposal from the IOC Executive Board following an agreement between the relevant OCOG[Organizing Committees of the Olympic Games], the relevant IF and the IOC, the sports programme may be amended by decision of the Session not later than three years prior to the opening of the relevant Olympic Games."
In other words, pickleball could technically be added as soon as the 2028 games, but a lot would have to happen very fast and soon, which is unlikely.
