Sports

Franken, Dettmer Applaud Decision to Reinstate Wrestling in Olympic Games

U.S. Sen. Al Franken and Minnesota Rep. Bob Dettmer applauded the International Olympic Committee's decision on Sunday to reinstate wrestling as a sport in the 2020 and 2024 Olympic Games.

Wrestling was reinstated on Sunday as an Olympic sport in the 2020 and 2024 Olympic Games/

A 95-member panel from the International Olympic Committee heard presentations from the three sports—wrestling, softball/baseball and squash—and casted votes after questioning.

According to the Daily O’Collegian in Stillwater, Oklahoma, wrestling received 49 votes; baseball and softball received 24 and squash received 22 votes.

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“I was thrilled to see Wrestling has been reinstated as an Olympic event for the 2020 and 2024 summer games,” Rep. Bob Dettmer, who authored a resolution last spring calling on the IOC to reconsider a decision to drop wrestling from the Olympics. “Around the world and especially here in Minnesota, this sport is special.”

Sen. Al Franken, a former high school wrestler, was also pleased with the announcement, and made the following statement after the IOC announced their decision to reinstate wrestling for the 2020 Olympic Games:

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“Wrestling is an incredible sport loved by many Minnesotans, including myself, and one whose athletes deserve the opportunity to participate at the peak level of Olympic competition,” Franken said. “I’m so pleased that the requests made to the IOC, including my own, to reinstate wrestling as an Olympic sport didn’t fall on deaf ears. I'm glad that young wrestlers in Minnesota and across the world will still get to dream about one day competing in the Olympics.”


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