The Olympic Games

The current program of the Olympic Games includes 35 different sports, 53 disciplines and more than 400 events. The Summer Olympic Games includes 28 sports with 38 disciplines and the Winter Olympic Games includes 7 sports with 15 disciplines.

Several sports have multiple disciplines that are governed by the same international sports federation, but are often considered different sports by the public. Examples include swimming and water polo (both are disciplines of aquatics), or figure skating and speed skating (both are disciplines of skating).

Past Olmpic Games included several sports no longer on the current program, such as polo and tug of war. Archery and tennis are examples of sports that were competed at early Games, were dropped from the Games, and then were subsequently returned to the official program (in 1972 and 1992, respectively).

Demonstration sports have often been included in the Olympic Games, usually to promote a local sport from the host country or to gauge interest and support for the sport. Several of these sports, such as baseball and curling, were subsequently added to the official program (in 1992 and 1998 respectively).

Summer sports:

Aquatics, Archery, Athletics, Badminton, Baseball, Basketball, Boxing, Canoe-kayak, Cycling, Equestrian, Fencing, Football, Gymnastics, Handball, Hockey, Judo, Modern Pentathlon, Rowing, Sailing, Shooting, Softball, Table Tennis, Taekwondo, Tennis, Triathlon, Volleyball, Weightlifting, Wrestling,

Winter sports:

Biathlon, Bobsleigh, Curling, Ice Hockey, Luge, Skating, Skiing.

Demonstration sports for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games:
Wushu