From his 1st interview in the wake of his gold medal won on August 5, the French Steven Da Costa has continued to plead for the presence of Karate in Paris in 2024. Reaction of Estanguet, of the French Minister of Sports, mobilization of deputies... The press seizes on the subject. The Olympic quest for Karate resumes. Is there still reason to hope ?

The objective answer, and even official since this morning Saturday August 14th via the IOC, is no. But there are still a few (small) reasons to hope, which gives plenty (reasons) not to give up, nor level the guard. Back on a crazy week and analysis of the hopes.

By Ludovic Mauchien

Will Karate be in Paris at the 2024 Olympics ? The decision taken by the OCOG in February 2019 not to include it in the program appeared so surreal, unfair, illogical, that it aroused frustration, a feeling of being cuckolded, ultimately generating... hope. Yes, yes, it does ! It is so impossible, improbable that it cannot be and creates a crazy dream : to have the IOC and the OCOG reverse their decision. But, for now, the point is.

And never before since this morning, August 14, when the IOC spoke through its sports director in an interview with AFP. « The door is indeed closed for karate », confirmed Kit McConnell. « The goal is to give everyone certainties as soon as possible, so no change has been possible since last year (Editor’s note : the program was approved by the IOC in December 2020) ». The debate is closed, logically. When you know how the IOC works, the OCOG’s approach and the thinking that led them to make this decision, Paris, it’s over.

Yet, without showing blissful optimism, there are still some grounds for hope. Hope is (very) thin but, to a valiant heart, nothing is impossible. On the other hand, one thing is certain, for success, everyone will have to do the job.

THE FACTS

Thursday August 5. Steven Da Costa wins the gold medal in the -67 kg. On the podium, he raised his fist AS Tommie Smith at the Mexico Olympics. From his 1st interview on France TV, the Frenchman launched a subtle : « I still hope that karate can be in Paris 2024. I would have liked to go get a medal there ». The French press relays and seizes on the subject.

Sunday August 8. Asked at a press conference on the subject, Tony Estanguet, president of the OCOG Paris 2024, replied : «  I do not regret the decision […] There are already 5 combat sports. We are going to look for sports that young people watch, which are successful on social networks [...] We believe that the sports chosen allow us to tick boxes that are not currently checked ». A clumsy response, a miscommunication, which sets fire to the powder and triggers anger on... social media.

For his part, Steven Da Costa is appointed flag bearer of the French delegation for the closing ceremony of the Games, at the request of the Minister of Sports, Roxana Maracineanu. Very symbolic gesture which gives unprecedented media exposure to the French and Karate.

Wednesday August 11. Enthroned herald of Olympic Karate, Steven Da Costa continues interviews and TV appearances. He answers to Tony Estanguet. « He doesn’t remember where he came from ? He’s been like us. He knows what we’re going through » (Editor’s note : in 2000, canoeing was to disappear from the Olympic program. After a strong mobilization, it was reinstated and this allowed Estanguet to win 1 of his 3 Olympic titles).

Invited on the French national TV, the Olympic champion declared : « We have another fight to wage from now on : Paris 2024 […] When we talk about audience, we no longer talk about sport. We are talking about money and we are completely leaving the universe and the values ​​of the Olympic Games ». (see the interview in French)

At the same time, the French Minister of Sports publicly supports Steven Da Costa and, consequently, the presence of Karate at the 2024 Olympic Games. « I support Steven Da Costa’s approach. It’s worth writing to the IOC at least », she said. In an interview in Le Parisien, she said : « I have already discussed the presence of karate on several occasions with the OCOG. Several nations have also expressed their interest in this reintegration, such as Japan where it is one of their flagship sports. The integration of Karate would be a great link between Tokyo 2021 and Paris 2024.

For us, all gold medals are important. Steven Da Costa did a great job in Tokyo. He’s fresh, he’s young, and he’s a super Olympic champion. It embodies youth, simplicity and modesty. I was sad for him that it was probably his last Olympics. If Karate was in Paris, I don’t see who could prevent him from winning the gold medal. […] Karate is a sport with a lot of licensees. We had very good results in Japan, but also in other world competitions. This could benefit Paris 2024 ». (see the interview in French)

Thursday August 12. The OCOG Paris 2024 officially reacts via a press release in which it explains its position and the reasons which led it not to include Karate in Paris. He closes the door. Excerpts : « Paris 2024 would first of all like to remind you that, since December 2020, the program of the events is final and cannot be changed anymore ».

« For the Paris 2024 Games, new standards have been issued in order to limit the size of the Games. New sports athletes are included in the global quota (10,500), and no longer in an additional quota as in Tokyo. Consequently, the number of additional sports for the Paris Games is 4 and not 5, going from 474 (including 80 for karate) to 232 ».

« Between September 2018 and February 2019, Paris 2024 met 19 international federations which each presented their project for the inclusion of their sport. […] 4 sports have been selected. […] A choice guided by the identity of these young sports, accessible and connected with their time. […] In December 2020, the IOC definitively validated the official program of the Paris 2024 Games ».

For his part, Steven Da Costa gives an interview on Eurosport.fr (see the interview) : « It’s sad. Beyond defending my title, because I have my medal and no one will take it away from me, it is a fight for young people who dream and for all future generations who will return to the shadows and will not have never the chance to discover the magic of the Olympics. Amateur sports need the Olympics to know the media coverage, the sponsors and everything that goes with it. Today, it is essential to be at the Olympics. It’s another dimension, it has nothing to do with it. Going back is going to be hard. We don’t deserve this ».

Friday August 13. Lucky or bad luck, this Friday, August 13, 2021 is the day of open letters to Tony Estanguet. The first comes from the French Federation, signed by its president Francis Didier, « for the presence of Karate at the Olympic Games in Paris 2024 ». Excerpts : « Karate is universal and unifying […] It is young and popular. […] In France, 57% of licensees are under 18 years old, 250,000 practitioners come together in 5,000 clubs. […] Karate is beautiful and spectacular. In Tokyo, karate has seduced and fascinated beyond the followers of the discipline. […] French karate is historic and medalist. […] In 2021 in Tokyo, karate showed its most beautiful face. He could do the same in 2024 in Paris […] ». (see the letter)

The 2^nd open letter carries significant political weight. At the initiative of Xavier Paluszkiewicz, deputy for Meurthe-et-Moselle, the homeland of Steven Da Costa, 114 deputies, from all political stripes, signed the letter. Excerpts : « After a first official introduction in 2020, it would be difficult to understand and bearable for Karate to be dispossessed of its « Olympic » status by France, which has the 1^st Olympic champion, a title that he will not be able to defend [...] We owe it to the approximately 250,000 French women and men of all generations who practice this combat sport in total harmony with the Olympic values ​​and those of the spirit of Coubertin ». (see the letter)

Saturday August 14. It’s a new cold shower that awakens the world of Karate. Asked by AFP, IOC Sports Director Kit McConnell confirms that nothing will change and closes the debate. Excerpts : « The door is indeed closed for karate. […] No change is possible. […] If the considerations were purely financial, we would choose sports capable of filling stadiums with 80,000 seats. […] Attract a younger audience. […] The 4 sports chosen for the Olympics-2024 bring a real balance to the Olympic program. In Tokyo, team sports and combat sports in particular were well represented, but more urban sports brought a very different dynamic to traditional sports. […] Winning a gold medal does not guarantee the sport’s presence in the next edition ». (see the interview in French) End of the story. It’s now written in stone. But... Stone can be worked, polished, (re) sculpted...

IS PARIS REALLY OVER ?

Let’s be clear. Karate at the Paris 2024 Olympics is like having to score an Ippon 1 hundredth of second to the gong to win. Impossible ? Harspatacki did it against Nishimura in Tokyo. So it is possible.

Of course, the answer is as light as the comparison is difficult. As Steven Da Costa said, « On a tatami mat, the outcome is up to me. There, it does not depend only on me… ». This is where the shoe pinches. Neither the OCOG nor the IOC, two big « machines », are ready to change their minds for the moment.

To do this, it will be compulsory for the mobilization to be powerful, in number and in quality, at the national and international level, from the sports community as well as from politics. Hajime !

THE REASONS OF HOPE

He is fresh, he is sparkling, he is nice, he presents well, he has a beautiful face, he is world champion, he is Olympic champion. French and international karate has a new weapon in their pocket, the herald they lacked : Steven Da Costa. Of course, his speeches alone will not be enough to reverse the trend but have already challenged and mobilized people. Karate « just » has to surf the wave long enough.

The know-how and the quality of the show demonstrated in Tokyo. Even if all was not perfect, the Olympic tournament pleads in favor of karate, considered to be cool and telegenic by many viewers.

A door can be opened. In Tokyo, the IOC voted for the modification of the Olympic charter. Now, the executive board (not the session) can exclude a discipline from the program for lack of ethics, which greatly simplifies the procedure. If it can exclude it, it can integrate it. 2 sports are in the hot seat : weightlifting and, to a lesser extent, boxing. If one were to be excluded, it would free up places. To be continued.

The militant intervention of the French Minister of Sports, Roxana Maracineanu, and the mobilization of many deputies show that the absence of karate at the Paris Olympics does not leave everyone indifferent. For now, that is not enough. And if there wasn’t a precedent like canoeing in 2000 (Estanguet’s sport), the case would be over. But there is one.

To reverse a trend, sometimes it only takes a few things, a spark, a flash. If the mobilization intensifies and continues, anything can be allowed. Nothing is ever set in stone.

THE GRAPES OF DOUBT

The key, one man has it, it’s the IOC President Thomas Bach. Since the 2018 YOG, the man has made up his mind. The Breakdance, he loved it. He applauded, he beat the rhyhtm, he smiled. He enojyed himself with music. In karate, he got bored. Organizational flaws, refereeing errors, lack of spectacle, he was not convinced. In addition, according to several corroborating sources, relations between the WKF and the IOC are rather fresh, especially between the 2 presidents. And the boss is Thomas Bach.

If he is convinced that Karate must be reinstated, it will be. Especially since it is now the Executive Board that votes on the presence of a sport at the Games. Of the hundred or so members, Thomas Bach has appointed about sixty of them.

And to convince Thomas Bach in such a restricted space-time, it will be necessary to act quickly and well : to analyze the competition without concession, to see what can be improved, to make proposals… In short, to get in working order at all levels.

Thomas Bach is the boss, there is no question. But while the winds of change must obviously be accompanied internationally, the momentum to date can only come from France. The movement began to take shape. But it is insufficient and incomplete for the time being. The National olympic committee has not officially commented on the subject. It’s a (bad?) sign.

To convince, Karate must also be supported by the sports movement. Admittedly, a good number of technicians and leaders of federations are surprised, even indignant, by the situation but, for the time being, the world of French sport, its emblematic champions, have not shown public support for Karate. It is true that many are collaborating on the Paris 2024 project.