As the Paris Olympics come closer and athletes look forward to living their Olympic dream, so does a sport. Lacrosse has been officially added to the list of sports to be played at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. The big news has naturally made the Lacrosse community happy. And its players are brimming with joy.
The sport has been a part of the Olympics multiple times and 2028 will mark its sixth official addition. A recently uploaded social media post displayed some of the US Lacrosse players speaking about their thoughts about the decision. In fact, players were happy about their sport coming back after 120 years.
The thrill and joy of US players on the Olympics addition
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Lacrosse is an ancient sport played with its own unique equipment and protective gear. The sport harbors its origins in 12th century North America when indigenous people came up with the contact sport. Recently. Lacrosse was added to the upcoming 2028 Los Angeles Olympics along with four more games. World Lacrosse and the US Women’s National team jointly made a post on Instagram showcasing US women lacrosse players expressing themselves about the decision.
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According to US national team player, Dempsey Arsenault, “To have Lacrosse be included is putting lacrosse in front of the world to show how amazing the sport is.” Another player, Charlotte North noted how lacrosse always had the numbers to have been granted an Olympic spot. While this showed how respected the players felt because their deserving sport received the addition, another player mentioned its value for the native Americans.
Sixes US National team player, Sam Swart said, “This all goes back to the people that created the game, the indigenous people and the Haudenosaunee. We wouldn’t have anything without them. At the end of the day, we made it.” The happy words of the players were aptly captured by the post’s caption, “Olympic dreams do come TRUE.” This dream was in the making for very long. In fact, the process of its restoration at the Olympics began almost eight years ago.
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The homecoming of Lacrosse in 2028 Los Angeles
Despite the sport being quite popular in the US, especially among natives, lacrosse doesn’t enjoy mainstream attention. While it may look like a decision of a few meetings and some pen strokes, its Olympics addition took a long time. According to USA Lacrosse CEO Marc Riccio, the entire process of bringing the sport back started seven to eight years ago.
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Riccio credited the CEO before him, Steve Stenersen, along with World Lacrosse, for the eventual addition by the IOC. The sport was last played in the Olympics in 1908 and had once been demonstrated in the 1948 Olympics. However, the sport now has one more chance to cement itself permanently in the grandest stage of sports. Will the sixth time be the charm for lacrosse?
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