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No Martial Arts Planned for Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics

As a Vancouver resident and Canadian, I am proud that my city is hosting the 2010 Winter Olympics. People are in the streets, celebrating, the torch relay has come through my neighbourhood, and things are shaping up quite nicely. For a moment, nobody is worried about the cost overruns into the billions, or road closures, or any of the other little inconveniences. The mood is buoyant and it feels as if the Olympic promise is being fulfilled. But as a martial arts practitioner, I am now starting to ask some questions. Why are there no Martial Arts in the 2010 Winter Olympics?

The city of Vancouver is a mecca for Martial Arts, with a legacy that goes back decades, is home to hundreds and hundreds of schools, and is home to world champions, heroes, and superstars across all the disciplines. Even MMA is now officially sanctioned here. Now UFC 115 is planned for June, and MMA Expo is coming in April. Why then, aren’t there any forms of martial arts represented in the 2010 Winter Olympic Games is beyond me.

I did some research on the web, reviewing the 2010 Olympics website. Please allow me to confirm. There will be no:

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
Mixed Martial Arts
Judo
Karate
Kickboxing
Tae Kwon Do
Boxing
Wrestling

Its a shame, because any of these disciplines would be a welcome alternative to other, not so martial arty events such as Curling, or Figure Skating. I am sure fans and practitioners of the great variety and forms of martial arts in this city and indeed all of Canada will agree with me, and share my disappointment.

Fortunately, Vancouver has many exiting Martial Arts events in the weeks and months ahead that we can all look forward to:

In the mean time, lets hope at the very least that there is a snowball fight between rival countries during idle moments. I wonder what the odds are in Las Vegas between nations in that ‘unofficial event’.