London 2012: Rugby Sevens Kicked Into Touch

Regent's Park will not be used as a sporting venue when the Olympics are staged in London in 2012, after the programme for the games was reduced by two sports here last night.

Temporary stadiums costing £50m were planned for the royal park to host baseball and softball but both were ejected from the Olympics, the first time any sport has been dropped from the games since polo in 1936.

During a day which on occasions touched high farce and more political intrigue during the 117th International Olympic Committee session, the games programme for London was reduced from 28 to 26.

Squash and karate were put forward to replace baseball and softball but failed to earn the support of two-thirds of the IOC members as its charter requires for inclusion.

Rugby sevens, the favourite to replace any sport voted out, also failed to earn a place despite support from the IOC president Jacques Rogge, a former Belgian rugby international. So did golf, which might have been hosted at St Andrews in Scotland. Roller sports were the fifth activity rejected by the IOC members.

In the morning, against all predictions, the 105 members left here voted that baseball and softball should not be included in the Olympics after Beijing in 2008.

Baseball had been under threat for several years because of the refusal of Major League Baseball in the United States to allow its top players to take part. But the omission of softball was particularly controversial because it is the only women-only team sport on the Olympic programme.

Rogge had tried unsuccessfully to remove both sports in 2002. This time they were dropped after failing to receive support from 50% of the IOC members present.

The Association of Summer International Olympic Federations, an umbrella organisation for the 28 sports, had complained volubly about Rogge's plan to remove any of them from the games and promised to protect them. So it was a bitter Dan Porter, president of the International Softball Federation, who emerged from the meeting.

"It's disappointing that many people advocated their support going in there but that didn't translate to votes," he said.

Britain has never qualified for the event since the sport was first included in the Olympics in Atlanta in 1996. But it missed out on Athens last year by only one place and the British Olympic Association had planned to offer financial support to ensure it was competitive in 2012.

"This is devastating news for both sports and their future in the UK," said Simon Clegg, the chief executive of the BOA.

"It is ironic that, [after] we have worked so closely with softball in particular and they have been able to raise their game to within striking distance of Olympic qualification on performance grounds, they are now to be struck from the games."

Rugby sevens might have been played at Twickenham if it had been included in the programme. London organisers estimate that the two-day competition involving 12 countries would have been worth £7.5m in ticket sales.

"In terms of broadcasting, commercial and ticket sales it has been demonstrated through the IOC's own evaluation process that sevens is among the top five in most categories, compared to the existing Olympic sports," said Dr Syd Millar, the president of the International Rugby Board.

"The result of this decision not to add sevens is also very disappointing for the small nations of the world and African nations who have little opportunity to compete at the highest levels in the Olympics.

"Rugby sevens, with Fiji as world champions, provides these nations with the opportunity to be successful."

Jahangir Khan, the former six-times world champion and now president of the World Squash Federation, had led squash's bid.

"We've been working very hard to be included in 2012, which would have been great in London, where the sport is so popular," said Khan. "I never thought we would be eliminated like this."

Mike Lee, the spokesman for London 2012, said Regents Park would still play a role in the Olympics as the venue of a series of cultural events.

"It's entirely a decision for the IOC as to which sports are included," he said. "We will be delighted to deliver a Olympics of 26 sports. We will deliver the games the IOC want."

Conspiracy theorists claimed the decision not to include any new sports, particularly rugby sevens, was another damaging blow for Rogge. The election of London on Wednesday as the host city for 2012 was perceived as a snub to the president, who it is believed had wanted Paris.

Others claimed the major Olympic sports, led by athletics and football, had ganged up on the smaller federations in an effort to reduce the number of sports on the programme so they would receive a greater share of the television revenue from the IOC.