Overview
- The International Olympic Committee formally decided to exclude Nordic combined from the 2030 Winter Games for the French Alps after its multi-factor review placed the sport lowest across four Olympics since 2014.
- The IOC based the decision on a 14‑indicator evaluation that includes ticket sales and television reach and found Nordic combined consistently underperformed those measures.
- Japan's veteran athlete Akito Watabe said he felt deep anger and sadness at the removal and blamed the sport's failure to build women's events for much of its decline.
- Stakeholders warn Olympic exclusion typically cuts youth entry, federation funding, and sponsor support, which could accelerate a drop in participation and competition depth.
- Other skiing events such as the parallel giant slalom will remain on the 2030 program, reflecting the IOC's push to favor disciplines with stronger commercial reach and broader gender balance.