10 countries against IOC`s decision to take wrestling out of Olympics
Some 10 of the world`s top wrestling countries - Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bulgaria, Georgia, Iran, Japan, Kazakhstan, the United States, Russia and Turkey have joined their forces against the International Olympic Committee`s (IOC) decision to drop wrestling as an Olympic sport as of the 2020 Summer Games.
Delegations of these countries on Wednesday gathered to discuss how to reverse the IOC`s decision in Tehran.
Wrestling is an ancient sport, dating back to the very first modern Olympics in Athens, Greece in 1896. It was also in the ancient Olympics. Last week the IOC decided to remove wrestling as one of the 25 core Olympic sports.
The decision to take wrestling out of the Olympics was made after the IOC looked at a report that examined TV ratings, ticket sales and the popularity of the sport.