17 March 2025 – The International Olympic Committee (IOC) Executive Board (EB), meeting today in Costa Navarino, Greece, has decided that the initial sports programme of the Olympic Games Brisbane 2032 will be determined at an IOC Session in 2026.
As per Rule 45 of the Olympic Charter, the sports programme for a specific edition of the Olympic Games is decided by the IOC Session in principle seven years prior to the Games, unless the IOC EB decides otherwise.
Following discussions between the Brisbane 2032 Organising Committee and the IOC, it was agreed that it would be beneficial if the initial sports programme decision were to be finalised next year, which would be approximately six years prior to the Olympic Games. Some of the benefits include:
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providing Brisbane 2032 additional time to work with its delivery partners to review and validate critical sporting infrastructure projects which will play a pivotal role in the Olympic Games; and
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providing an opportunity for Brisbane 2032 to collaborate with the IOC to further refine the approach to the sports programme, tailoring the process and timeline, with a focus on optimisation and partnerships, particularly with International Federations.
Taking the above into consideration and based on the agreement in principle by Brisbane 2032, the Olympic Programme Commission recommended that the IOC Executive Board, pursuant to Rule 45 of the Olympic Charter, defer the timeline to determine the initial sports programme.
Separate to this decision, the Brisbane 2032 Organising Committee will have the opportunity, at a date still to be decided, to propose to the IOC one or more additional events from new sports once the initial sports programme is finalised.
This opportunity for Organising Committees was first introduced for the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, in line with the new flexibility allowed by the Olympic Agenda 2020 reforms, and is reflected in the Bye-laws to Rule 45.
