#BACKTHEBID2020 TIMELINE
JULY 2011:
World Squash Federation (WSF) hired Vero Communications to lead squash’s bid campaign for the 2020 Olympic Games.
SEPTEMBER 2011:
WSF opened an office in Lausanne to be close to the headquarters of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
OCTOBER 2011:
WSF launched ”Back the Bid 2020″—Squash’s campaign to get the sport into the 2020 Olympic Games. WSF revealed the campaign slogan—Squash: Sport at its Best.
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7 MARCH 2012:
WSF unveiled www.squash2020.com—a social media portal enabling the sport’s global fan base to learn more about the bid and show their support for squash’s Olympic campaign. Launch of the Squash2020 bid logo was unveiled with the slogan “Sport At Its Best”.
10 APRIL 2012:
WSF launched a Bid Brochure—a 48-page full colour publication highlighting Squash as an innovative and growing sport with a global reach across all five continents.
MAY 2012:
WSF President N Ramachandran, supported by England’s world champion Nick Matthew and Pakistan’s leading female player Maria Toor Pakay, attended the SportAccord Convention in Quebec to promote Squash’s campaign to become an Olympic Sport.
JUNE 2012:
WSF Ambassadors Programme visit to Malawi and Namibia with WSF CEO Andrew Shelley, Malaysia’s record seven-time women’s world champion Nicol David and Egypt’s former world junior champion Mohamed El Shorbagy.
10 SEPTEMBER 2012:
The world’s top squash players turned out in force at the Curve Shopping Mall in Selangor, Malaysia, to stage a flashmob to draw attention to the sport’s Olympic bid, led by Women’s World No. 1 Nicol David.
1 OCTOBER 2012:
The WSA players, led by Nicol David stormed Brooklyn Heights, New York, with a flashmob to promote awareness of squash’s Back the Bid 2020 campaign.
20 OCTOBER 2012:
Some 40,000 squash players worldwide participated in World Squash Day, the biggest fixture in the history of the sport, dedicated to supporting the WSF’s bid for a place in the 2020 Olympic Games. A squash flashmob was held in Causeway Bay, Hong Kong, in support of the bid.
NOVEMBER 2012:
Professional Squash Association (PSA) joined forces with the world’s biggest squash court manufacturer, ASB, to enhance the spectator experience of the game.
1 – 2 DECEMBER 2012:
‘Inspection Visit’ by the IOC Programme Commission at the Hong Kong Open.
19 DECEMBER 2012:
WSF presentation to the IOC Programme Commission in Lausanne (along with the seven other sports bidding for an Olympic spot).
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JANUARY 2013:
IOC Programme Commission submitted its draft report to the IOC Executive Board.
12 FEBRUARY 2013:
IOC Executive Board decided which one of the 26 sports that were part of London 2012 should leave the Games programme after Rio 2016 – wrestling was recommended.
26 – 31 MAY 2013:
Seven bidding sports plus the one ejected from the Games in February’s meeting to present to the IOC Executive Board during the SportAccord Convention in St. Petersburg. IOC Executive Board to select two to three new sports to be proposed to the IOC Session for inclusion in the 2020 Olympic Games.
4 – 12 SEPTEMBER 2013:
IOC session to be held in Buenos Aires to choose the ONE new sport for the 2020 Olympic Games.
