This is a list of sports played in the Asian Games and other major affiliated games organized by the Olympic Council of Asia. On 29 June 2009, the OCA announced major changes to the event lists in the five major events, in particular aiming to restrict each sport to be played in not more than one event, although exemptions may be made. [1] The first round of changes commenced with the 2014 Asian Games when the number of events was recommended to be restricted to 35 with 28 Olympic sports and up to a maximum of seven non-Olympic sports. Some events currently in the Asian Games programme may henceforth be relegated to the newly formed Asian Indoor-Martial Arts Games which was first held in 2013 or to the Asian Beach Games.
The figures in each cell indicate the number of events for each sport contested at the respective Games; a bullet (•) denotes that the sport was contested as a demonstration sport.
Demonstration Asian Games sports
The following sports or disciplines have been demonstrated at the Asian Games for the years shown, but have never been included on the official Asian Games program:
The figures in each cell indicate the number of events for each sport contested at the respective Games; a bullet (•) denotes that the sport was contested as a demonstration sport.
Sport (Discipline) | Body World (Asia) | 86 | 90 | 96 | 99 | 03 | 07 | 11 | 17 | 25 | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Bandy | FIB | 1 | ||||||||||
Biathlon | IBU | 3 | 3 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 4 | ||
Curling | WCF | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | |||||||
Ice hockey | IIHF | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | ||
Skating | Figure | ISU (ASU) | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | ||
Short-track speed | 8 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 9 | |||
Speed | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 14 | |||
Ski mountaineering | ISMF (ASMF) | 3 | ||||||||||
Ski orienteering | IOF | 8 | ||||||||||
Skiing | Alpine | FIS (ASF) | 4 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 4 | 2 | |
Cross-country | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 12 | 10 | 6 | |||
Freestyle | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 4 | 11 | ||||||
Ski jumping | • | • | • | 2 | 3 | 3 | ||||||
Snowboarding | 3 • | 2 | 6 | 6 | ||||||||
Total events | 35 | 33 | 43 | 43 | 51 | 47 | 69 | 64 | 64 |
The figures in each cell indicate the number of events for each sport contested at the respective Games; a bullet (•) denotes that the sport was contested as a demonstration sport.
Sport (Discipline) | Body World (Asia) | 05 | 07 | 09 (M) | 09 | 13 | 17 | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
3x3 basketball | FIBA (FIBA Asia) | • | 2 | 2 | |||||
Aerobic gymnastics | FIG (AGU) | 4 | 4 | 4 | |||||
Bowling | IBF (ABF) | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | ||||
Boxing | IBA (ASBC) | 8 | |||||||
Chess | FIDE (ACF) | 9 | 4 | 4 | 10 | ||||
Cue sports | WCBS (ACBS) | 8 | 10 | 10 | 13 | ||||
Cycling | BMX freestyle | UCI (ACC) | 3 | 5 | |||||
Indoor | 5 | 5 | |||||||
Track | 9 | ||||||||
Dancesport | WDSF (DSA) | 12 | 12 | 10 | 10 | 11 | |||
Dragon & lion dance | IDLDF (DLDFA) | 6 | 6 | ||||||
Equestrian | FEI (AEF) | 3 | |||||||
Esports | IESF (AESF) | 3 | 6 | 6 | • | ||||
Finswimming | CMAS (AUF) | 8 | 16 | ||||||
Futsal | FIFA (AFC) | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | |||
Go | IGF (AGF) | 4 | |||||||
Indoor archery | WA (WAA) | 8 | |||||||
Indoor athletics | WA (AAA) | 26 | 26 | 26 | 25 | ||||
Indoor hockey | FIH (AHF) | 1 | |||||||
Judo | IJF (JUA) | 14 | |||||||
Ju-jitsu | JJIF (JJAU) | 7 | • | 25 | |||||
Kabaddi | Indoor | IKF (AKF) | 1 | 2 | |||||
Standard | 1 | ||||||||
Karate | WKF (AKF) | 10 | |||||||
Kickboxing | WAKO (WAKO Asia) | • | 10 | 8 | 9 | 15 | |||
Kurash | IKA (KCAO) | • | 14 | 8 | 8 | 15 | |||
Muaythai | IFMA (FAMA) | 17 | 9 | 15 | 9 | 9 | 14 | ||
Pencak silat | IPSF (APSIF) | 11 | 15 | ||||||
Pétanque | FIPJP (ABSC) | 4 | |||||||
Roller sports | Roller freestyle | WSK (WSA) | 3 | 4 | |||||
Skateboarding | 2 | 2 | |||||||
Sambo | FIAS (SUAO) | 23 | |||||||
Sepak takraw | ISTAF (ASTAF) | 2 | 2 | 2 | |||||
Short course swimming | AQUA (AASF) | 40 | 30 | 30 | 30 | 30 | |||
Shuttlecock | ISF | 6 | |||||||
Sport climbing | IFSC (IFSC Asia) | 4 | 4 | ||||||
Taekwondo | WT (ATU) | 16 | 18 | ||||||
Tennis | ITF (ATF) | 5 | |||||||
Vovinam | WVVF (AVF) | 14 | |||||||
Weightlifting | IWF (AWF) | 16 | |||||||
Wrestling | Alysh | UWW (UWW Asia) | 24 | ||||||
Belt | • | 28 | |||||||
Kazakh kuresi | 3 | ||||||||
Pahlavani | 3 | ||||||||
Turkmen goresh | 26 | ||||||||
Wrestling | 22 | ||||||||
Wushu | IWUF (WFA) | 11 | 8 | ||||||
Xiangqi | WXF (AXF) | 4 | 2 | ||||||
Total events | 120 | 151 | 108 | 215 | 100 | 348 |
The figures in each cell indicate the number of events for each sport contested at the respective Games; a bullet (•) denotes that the sport was contested as a demonstration sport.
Sport (Discipline) | Body World (Asia) | 08 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 16 | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
3x3 basketball | FIBA (FIBA Asia) | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | |||
Air sports | Paragliding | FAI (AFA) | 8 | 4 | ||||
Paramotoring | 4 | 4 | ||||||
Aquatics | Beach water polo | AQUA (AASF) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ||
Open water swimming | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | ||||
Beach athletics | WA (AAA) | 12 | 14 | |||||
Beach flag football | IFAF (IFAF Asia) | 1 | ||||||
Beach handball | IHF (AHF) | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | ||
Beach kabaddi | IKF (AKF) | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | ||
Beach kurash | IKA (KCAO) | 8 | 10 | |||||
Beach sambo | FIAS (SUAO) | 7 | 8 | |||||
Beach sepak takraw | ISTAF (ASTAF) | 4 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 6 | ||
Beach soccer | FIFA (AFC) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ||
Beach volleyball | FIVB (AVC) | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | ||
Beach woodball | IWbF (AWbF) | 4 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 11 | ||
Beach wrestling | UWW (UWW Asia) | 4 | 6 | 8 | ||||
BMX freestyle | UCI (ACC) | 4 | ||||||
Bodybuilding | IFBB (AFBF) | 6 | 6 | 5 | 7 | |||
Coastal rowing | FISA (ARF) | 6 | ||||||
Dragon boat | IDBF (ADBF) | 6 | 6 | |||||
Footvolley | (AFF) | 1 | ||||||
Jet ski | UIM | 4 | 4 | 6 | ||||
Ju-jitsu | JJIF (JJAU) | 12 | 18 | |||||
Muaythai | IFMA (FAMA) | 15 | 16 | |||||
Pencak silat | IPSF (APSIF) | 8 | 18 | |||||
Pétanque | FIPJP (ABSC) | 9 | 9 | |||||
Roller sports | Roller freestyle | WSK (WSA) | 3 | |||||
Skateboarding | 3 | |||||||
Speed | 8 | |||||||
Sailing | WS (ASAF) | 6 | 6 | 2 | 9 | |||
Shuttlecock | ISF | 7 | ||||||
Sport climbing | IFSC (IFSC Asia) | 8 | 4 | |||||
Squash | WSF (ASF) | 2 | ||||||
Surfing | ISA (ASF) | 5 | ||||||
Tent pegging | ITPF (ATPC) | 8 | ||||||
Triathle | UIPM (AMPC) | 3 | ||||||
Triathlon | Duathlon | WT (AST) | 3 | |||||
Triathlon | 2 | 2 | 3 | |||||
Vocotruyen | WFVV | 11 | ||||||
Vovinam | WVVF (AVF) | 9 | ||||||
Water skiing | IWWF (AWWF) | 6 | 4 | 13 | ||||
Total events | 71 | 52 | 49 | 165 | 172 |
The figures in each cell indicate the number of events for each sport contested at the respective Games; a bullet (•) denotes that the sport was contested as a demonstration sport.
Sport (Discipline) | Body World (Asia) | 09 | 13 | 25 | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
3x3 basketball | FIBA (FIBA Asia) | 2 | 2 | X | ||
Aquatics | Diving | AQUA (AASF) | 4 | 4 | X | |
Swimming | 32 | 30 | ||||
Athletics | WA (AAA) | 28 | 34 | X | ||
Badminton | BWF (BA) | 3 | ||||
Beach volleyball | FIVB (AVC) | 2 | X | |||
Belbogli kurash | WABK | X | ||||
Bowling | IBF (ABF) | 8 | ||||
Boxing | IBA (ASBC) | 15 | ||||
Canoeing | ICF (ACC) | X | ||||
Chess | FIDE (ACF) | X | ||||
Cycling | UCI (ACC) | X | ||||
Fencing | FIE (FCA) | 6 | X | |||
Football | FIFA (AFC) | 1 | 1 | X | ||
Golf | IGF (APGC) | 2 | ||||
Gymnastics | FIG (AGU) | X | ||||
Handball | IHF (AHF) | 2 | X | |||
Hand-to-hand fighting | HSIF | X | ||||
Judo | IJF (JUA) | 6 | X | |||
Ju-jitsu | JJIF (JJAU) | X | ||||
Karate | WKF (AKF) | X | ||||
Kurash | IKA (KCAO) | 16 | ||||
Rowing | FISA (ARF) | X | ||||
Rugby sevens | WR (AR) | 2 | ||||
Sailing | WS (ASAF) | 5 | ||||
Sambo | FIAS (SUAO) | X | ||||
Shooting | ISSF (ASC) | 4 | 8 | |||
Squash | WSF (ASF) | 4 | ||||
Table tennis | ITTF (ATTU) | 4 | 2 | |||
Taekwondo | WT (ATU) | 4 | X | |||
Tennis | ITF (ATF) | 3 | ||||
Triathlon | WT (AST) | X | ||||
Weightlifting | IWF (AWF) | 9 | X | |||
Wrestling | UWW (UWW Asia) | X | ||||
Total events | 90 | 122 | 279 |
Athletics is a group of sporting events that involves competitive running, jumping and throwing. The most common types of athletics competitions are track and field, road running, cross-country running, and racewalking.
Olympic sports are sports that are contested in the Summer Olympic Games and Winter Olympic Games. The 2024 Summer Olympics included 32 sports; the 2022 Winter Olympics included seven sports. Each Olympic sport is represented at the International Olympic Committee (IOC) by an international governing body called an International Federation (IF).
Association football has been included in every Summer Olympic Games as a men's competition sport, except 1896 and 1932. Women's football was added to the official program at the Atlanta 1996 Games.
The 1951 Asian Games, officially known as the First Asian Games, was a multi-sport event celebrated in New Delhi, India from 4 to 11 March 1951. The Games received names like First Asiad, 1951 Asiad, and New Dehli 1951. A total of 489 athletes representing 11 Asian National Olympic Committees (NOCs) participated in 57 events from eight sports and discipline. The Games was the successor of the Far Eastern Games and the revival of the Western Asiatic Games. The 1951 Asiad were originally scheduled to be held in 1950, but postponed until 1951 due to delays in preparations. On 13 February 1949, the Asian Games Federation was formally established in Delhi, with Delhi unanimously announced as the first host city of the Asian Games.
A team sport is a type of sport where the fundamental nature of the game or sport requires the participation of multiple individuals working together as a team, and it is inherently impossible or highly impractical to execute the sport as a single-player endeavour. In team sports, the cooperative effort of team members is essential for the sport to function and achieve its objectives. The objective often involves teammates facilitating the movement of a ball or similar object in accordance with a set of rules in order to score points. Examples are basketball, volleyball, rugby, water polo, handball, lacrosse, cricket, baseball, and the various forms of football and hockey. These sports emphasize teamwork, strategy, and coordination among team members while competing against opposing teams to achieve a common goal. Team sports do not include individual or individual-to-team events within a sport.
Badminton had its debut as an official event on the 1992 Summer Olympics and has been contested in eight Olympiads. 74 different nations have appeared in the Olympic badminton competitions, with 17 appearing all nine times. It is governed by the Badminton World Federation.
Baseball at the Summer Olympics unofficially debuted at the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris, and was first contested as a demonstration sport at the 1912 Summer Olympics in Stockholm. It became an official Olympic sport at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, then was played at each Olympiad through the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. The sport was then dropped from the Summer Olympic program, until being revived for the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo for a single appearance. It is next expected to be part of the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.
The 1958 Asian Games, officially the Third Asian Games and commonly known as Tokyo 1958, was a multi-sport event held in Tokyo, Japan, from 24 May to 1 June 1958. It was governed by the Asian Games Federation. A total of 1,820 athletes representing 20 Asian National Olympic Committees (NOCs) participated in the Games. The program featured competitions in 13 different sports encompassing 97 events, including four non-Olympic sports, judo, table tennis, tennis and volleyball. Four of these competition sports – field hockey, table tennis, tennis and volleyball – were introduced for the first time in the Asian Games.
The 1st Asian Winter Games, also known as Sapporo 1986, were held from March 1 to 8, 1986 in Sapporo, Japan. The Japanese Olympic Committee first suggested the idea of having a continent-wide winter version of the Asian Games in 1982. With Sapporo's expertise and infrastructure available after successfully hosting the 1972 Winter Olympics, the Olympic Council of Asia General Assembly in Seoul in 1984 decided to give Japan the privilege of hosting the first ever Asian Winter Games. Participating in a total of 35 events in seven sports were 430 athletes and officials from seven countries.
Short-track speed skating has been a contest at the Winter Olympics since the 1992 Winter Games in Albertville, France. Prior to that, it was a demonstration sport at the 1988 games. The results from the 1988 demonstration competition are not included in the official Olympic statistics. The sport has been dominated by teams from East Asia and North America, namely South Korea, China, Canada and the United States. Those four countries have won 147 of 195 medals awarded since 1992. South Korea leads the medal tally, with 53 medals including 26 golds since 1992. The majority of medals that South Korea and China have won at the Winter Olympics come from short-track speed skating.
Taekwondo made its first appearance at the Olympics as a demonstration sport at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea. The opening ceremony featured a mass demonstration of taekwondo, with hundreds of adults and children performing moves in unison. Taekwondo was again a demonstration sport at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain. Taekwondo became a full medal sport at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia, and has been a sport in the Olympic games since then.
The Commonwealth Games sports comprise all the sports officially recognised and approved by the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF). There are a total of 16 core sports and a further 4 core para-sports that are competed at every games. In addition, the CGF allow organising committees to choose from various optional sports and disciplines to complete their games' program.
Youth Olympic Games is an international multi-sport event for athletes aged 15 to 18 years old. Organized by the International Olympic Committee, the Games are held every four years in staggered summer and winter events consistent with the current Olympic Games format, though in reverse order with the Olympic Winter Games held in leap years instead of the Games of the Olympiad. The first summer version was held in Singapore from 14 to 26 August 2010 while the first winter version was held in Austria from 13 to 22 January 2012.
Sports in Malaysia are an important part of Malaysian culture. Sports in Malaysia are popular from both the participation and spectating aspect. Malaysians from different walks of life join in a wide variety of sports for recreation as well as for competition. In the broadest definition of sports—physical exercise of all sorts—the four most popular recreational sports among the general population of Malaysia are exercise walking, aerobic exercise, strength training, and running. Other most popular sports are bicycling, swimming, climbing, camping, bowling, hiking, fishing, scuba diving and paragliding.
This is a list of sports played in the biennial Southeast Asian Games. Unlike the Olympic games, there are no official limits to the number of sports which may be contested, and the range may be decided by the organising host pending approval by the Southeast Asian Games Federation. Albeit for some core sports which must be featured, the host is also free to introduce other sports. Over time, this has meant as much as 43 sports in the 24th edition of the games, and the programme has included relatively obscure sports such as arnis, finswimming and pétanque.
The Pan American Games sports comprise all the sports contested in the Summer Olympic Games. In addition, traditional and popular sports throughout the Americas which are not contested at the Olympic Games are also contested such as bowling and baseball. As of 2015, the Pan American Games included 36 sports with 51 disciplines and 364 events. The number and kinds of events may change slightly from one Pan American Games to another.
Bowling was featured in the Summer Olympic Games demonstration programme in 1988 at Seoul's Royal Bowling Center. A total of 20 nations competed in the men's and women's tournament. No bowling professionals competed in the demonstration events.
The European Games is a continental multi-sport event in the Olympic tradition contested by athletes from European nations and several transcontinental countries. The Games were envisioned and are governed by the European Olympic Committees (EOC), which announced their launch at its 41st General Assembly in Rome, on 8 December 2012.
The FIVB Men's Volleyball World Championship is an international volleyball competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Volleyball (FIVB), the sport's global governing body. The initial gap between championships was variable, but since 1962, they were held every four years. The tournament will be held biennially starting in 2025.
The 2021 Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games, officially known as the 6th Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games and also known as Bangkok–Chonburi 2021, was a planned pan-Asian multi-sport event in indoor and martial arts sports that was supposed to be held from 21 to 30 November 2024 in Thailand, with its capital Bangkok and the eastern Thai province of Chonburi serving as joint co-hosts.