World Games sports

The World Games sports comprise all the sports contested in The World Games.^[1] Starting in Birmingham 2022, there was no distinction between official and invitational sports. José Perurena, IWGA President, stated, "In Birmingham, for the first time, invitational sports were no longer presented separately but were also part of the official programme."^[2] This is now The World Games policy.

Sports

Disciplines from the same sport are grouped under the same color:

Gymnastics

Roller sports

Included in the Olympic program

As invitational sport

Sport (Discipline)	Body	1981	1985	1989	1993	1997	2001	2005	2009	2013	2017	2022	2025
Official sports
Acrobatic gymnastics	FIG				15	15	5	5	5	5	5	5	5
Aerobic gymnastics						4	4	5	5	7	5	4	4
Rhythmic gymnastics							4	4	4	3	4	4
Trampoline and Tumbling		8	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	4	6
Parkour												4	4

Artistic roller skating	WSkate^{[s 1]}	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	3
Inline hockey								1	1	1	1	1	1
Roller hockey		1	1	1	1		1
Roller speed skating		8	12	10	10	10	10	12	10	18	18	18	18

Air sports	FAI					5	4	5	5	3	3	2	2
Archery	WA		4	4	6	6	6	6	6	7	7	7	7
Beach handball	IHF						2	2	2	2	2	2	2
Billiards	WCBS						1	1	1	1	1	1	2
Boules sports	CMSB		1	2	2	2	4	6	8	8	12	4	6
Bowling	WB^{[s 2]}	3	5	3	3	3	3	6	3	3	4	4
Canoe marathon	ICF									6		4	4
Canoe polo	ICF							2	2	2	2	2	2
Cheerleading	ICU												1
Dancesport	WDSF					2	2	3	3	3	4	5	12
Dragon boat	ICF							4	4				6
Duathlon	ITU									2			2
Finswimming	CMAS	12	17	14	14	16	10	10	10	10	14	16	16
Fistball	IFA		1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	2	2
Flag football	IFAF											2	1
Floorball	IFF					1					1	1	2
Flying disc	WFDF			•^[3]			3	1	1	1	1	1	2
Freediving	CMAS												9
Ju-jitsu	JJIF					10	9	10	10	13	22	18	19
Karate	WKF	9	12	12	12	12	12	13	13	12	12	12	12
Kickboxing	WAKO										7	6	12
Korfball	IKF		1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	2
Lacrosse (women's)	FIL										1	1	1
Lifesaving	ILS		10	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16	16
Muaythai	IFMA										11	12	6
Orienteering	IOF						3	3	5	5	5	5	5
Pool	WCBS						2	2	2	2	2	2	3
Powerboating	UIM												3
Powerlifting	IPF	9	3	6	6	6	6	6	8	8	8	8	16
Racquetball	IRF	4	2		2				2	2		2	3
Snooker	WCBS						1	1	1	1	1	1	2
Sambo	FIAS		17		9								11
Softball	WBSC^{[s 3]}	2	1			1996-2008			1	1		1	2
Sport climbing	IFSC							4	4	4	6	6	6
Squash	WSF					2		2	2	2	2	2	2
Sumo	IFS						8	8	8	8	8	8
Tug of war	TWIF	2	2	2	2	2	2	3	3	3	3	3	3
Water skiing	IWWF	8	6	6	6	12	6	8	6	8	8	8	6
Wheelchair rugby ^{[s 4]}	WWR											1	1
Wushu	IWUF								13	16		10	12

Previous official sports
Sport (Discipline)	Body	1981	1985	1989	1993	1997	2001	2005	2009	2013	2017	2022	2025
Badminton	BWF	5			since 1992
Baseball	WBSC^{[s 3]}	1			1992-2008							2020
Beach volleyball	FIVB				2	since 1996
Bodybuilding	IFBB	6	6	6	7	9	7	7	7
Casting	ICSF	11	12		13	12	6	6
Indoor cycling	UCI			5
Netball	INF		1	1	1
Rugby sevens	WR^{[s 5]}						1	1	1	1	since 2016
Taekwondo	WTF	10	8	12	12		since 2000
Triathlon	ITU			•^[3]	4		since 2000
Weightlifting (women)	IWF					9	since 2000

Invitational sports
Sport (Discipline)	Body	1981	1985	1989	1993	1997	2001	2005	2009	2013	2017	2022	2025
Water polo (women)^{[s 6]}	FINA	1					since 2000
American football	IFAF							1			1
Motocross	FIM		•
Speedway			•								1
Indoor motorcycle trials								1
Aikido	IAF			•	•	•	•	•
Bahn golf	WMSF			•
Boomerang				•^[3]
Baton twirling					•^[5]
Equestrian vaulting	FEI				•
Boule Lyonnaise^{[s 7]}	CMSB					2
Military pentathlon	CISM					2
Pesäpallo						1
Tug of war (women)	TWIF					2	1
Gateball	WGU						1
Indoor hockey	FIH							2
Tchoukball	FITB								2
Indoor rowing	FISA										7
Lacrosse (men's)	WL											1

Medal Events		104	125	112	155	165	140	169	164	199	201	223	TBC

Official sports		15	20	19	21	23	27	31	31	32	27	30	35
Invitational sports		1	4	5	3	6	5	6	5	4	4	5	N/A

^ Previously Fédération Internationale de Roller Sports which merged with International Skateboarding Federation in September 2017 to form the current World Skate.
^ The world governing body for nine-pin and ten-pin bowling changed its name from Fédération Internationale des Quilleurs to World Bowling in 2014.
^ ^a ^b The World Baseball Softball Confederation, which currently governs both baseball and softball, was created by a 2013 merger of two former governing bodies—the International Baseball Federation and the International Softball Federation.
^ Paralympic Sport since 2000
^ During the period in which rugby sevens was contested at the World Games, the world governing body was known as the International Rugby Board. The current name of World Rugby was adopted in 2014.
^ A structured invitational sport program did not exist for the 1981 World Games. Press coverage did not refer to water polo as an invitational sport. An agreement was reached with FINA in the lead-up to the games not to allow women's water polo athletes to march in the opening ceremony, to assuage the displeasure of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for its being included in the program.^[4]
^ From 2001 Boule Lyonnaise has been part of the Boules Sports program.

Past TWG sports and disciplines

Bodybuilding (Bodybuilding, Fitness) – Last contested in 2009 ^[6]
Bowling (Nine-pin bowling) – Contested only in 2005 as official
Cable wakeboard - Contested only in 2005 as official
Casting – Last contested in 2005
Flying Disc (Disc golf) – Contested only in 2001 as official, to be contested in 2025
Indoor cycling (Artistic cycling, Cycle ball) – Contested only in 1989 as official
Lifesaving (Beach) – Last contested in 2009
Netball – Last contested in 1993
Roller hockey (quad skate) - Last contested in 2001

Past TWG sports and disciplines added to the Olympic Games

Badminton – became an Olympic sport at the 1992 Summer Olympics
Baseball and Softball – were Olympic sports from 1992 (baseball)/1996 (softball) to 2008, and returned to the Olympics in 2020 and 2028 as optional sports
Beach volleyball - became an Olympic sport at the 1996 Summer Olympics
Breakdancing - will become an Olympic sport at the 2024 Summer Olympics
Flag football – will become an Olympic sport at the 2028 Summer Olympics
Karate – became an Olympic sport at the 2020 Summer Olympics
Lacrosse sixes – will become an Olympic sport at the 2028 Summer Olympics (lacrosse was competed at the 1904 and 1908 Summer Olympics as field lacrosse)
Rugby sevens – became an Olympic sport at the 2016 Summer Olympics (rugby union was competed as 15-a-side at the 1900, 1908, 1920 and 1924 Summer Olympics)
Sport climbing – became an Olympic sport at the 2020 Summer Olympics
Squash – will become an Olympic sport at the 2028 Summer Olympics
Taekwondo – became an Olympic sport at the 2000 Summer Olympics
Trampoline – certain individual events were introduced at the 2000 Summer Olympics
Triathlon – became an Olympic sport at the 2000 Summer Olympics
Water polo (women) - became an Olympic sport at the 2000 Summer Olympics (men never competed in water polo in The World Games, as it has been in all Summer Olympics since 1900)
Weightlifting (women) - became an Olympic sport at the 2000 Summer Olympics (men never competed in weightlifting in The World Games as it has been all Summer Olympics since 1920, and was also in the Summer Olympics in 1896 and 1904)

References

^ "World Games". sports123.com. Archived from the original on June 17, 2011. Retrieved 7 June 2012.
^ "Interview of the Month | IWGA". The World Games. 22 Dec 2022. Retrieved 2024-02-25.
^ ^a ^b ^c "THE WORLD GAMES CONTINUE TO GROW!". TheWorldGames.org. IWGA. 2019. Retrieved 2021-07-14. (In 1989) Aikido and Minigolf were presented as invitational sports, and Triathlon, Boomerang and Flying Disc were among the demonstration sports. This was the first time there were sports demonstrations at The World Games.
^ Berkow, Ira (July 28, 1981). "Unheralded Sports Exert a Pull, Too". New York Times. Retrieved 2015-10-25.
^ "History | World Baton Twirling Federation". www.wbtf.org. Retrieved 2022-06-18.
^ After various violations of Anti-Doping Rules at the 2009 World Games, IWGA decided to remove the sport from the program for the 2013 World Games in Cali. "IWGA - Body Building". theworldgames.org. Retrieved 3 July 2013.