Olympic Holdout Sport Bets on TV Ratings to Finally Welcome Women

Olympic Holdout Sport Bets on TV Ratings to Finally Welcome Women The last Olympic sport without a women's event is making a direct appeal to fans: watch the men compete this week, because your viewership could finally end the exclusion. Nordic combined, which mixes ski jumping and cross-country skiing, remains the only sport in the Olympic program contested solely by men [77899]. Female athletes have campaigned for inclusion for years, but International Olympic Committee (IOC) officials have cited a lack of global reach and development as barriers to adding a women's competition [77899]. Now, athletes and advocates are pointing to television ratings. They argue that strong audience numbers for the men's Nordic combined events at the current World Cup finals will demonstrate the public interest and commercial viability needed to justify a women's event [77899]. The stated goal is to secure inclusion by the 2030 Winter Olympics [77899]. The push comes as other winter sports have achieved gender parity. The upcoming Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Games will feature events like women's slopestyle skiing, though scheduling can still be affected by conditions like major snowstorms [78851]. For Nordic combined's female athletes, the wait continues, hinging on the proof they hope this week's broadcasts will provide [77899]. One Sport Bans Women. This Week's TV Ratings Could End It. Too Much Snow: Women's Slopestyle Postponed at Winter Olympics