world affairs: February 2009 Archives

In the past Getminted.com has reported on a long running bid by poker enthusiasts to have poker incorporated into the Olympic games for 2012 and beyond.

On December 27th, the U.K. gaming company CircusCasino.com announced that, after an aggressive internet campaign, it is trying to have poker added as an exhibition sport for the 2012 London Summer Olympics and achieve full medal status in time for the 2016 Summer Olympics, which will be held in either Chicago, Madrid, Rio de Janeiro, or Tokyo.

However a close look at the online petition which has been set up for players around the world to sign shows interest in the bid is minimal in the extreme.

Since November 2007 only 195 people have added their name to the petition on www.poker2012.org with just five doing so in 2009. Of these five two were Swedish, one was Canadian, there was one American and one Portuguese gentleman showing that British backing for the suggestion to incorporate poker into London 2012 is virtually non existent

The idea by CircusCasino.com to try and push for poker to be recognised came after an announcement in September by the U.K. Advertising Standards Authority that poker could be advertised as a sport.  Peter Nolan at CircusCasino.com said, "Poker's appeal is global. It transcends gender and age and is the fastest-growing sport in the world. It's ripe for Olympic recognition."