Bowls, darts and netball: These are the sports you want to see at the next Olympics

There was much to celebrate as the delayed competition came to a close earlier this month, with Great Britain winning 22 gold, 21 silver and 22 bronze medals.

After the introduction of five new sports – baseball, karate, skateboarding, sports climbing and surfing – at the Tokyo Games, we asked the readers what sports they hope to see introduced by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in future.

More than 40 sports were contested in Tokyo.

Related content: 'No loud talking and limited spectators' - all the Covid rules for the 2021 Tokyo Olympic Games

The delayed 2020 Paralympic Games launch on August 24 this year, with the Winter Olympics set for Bejing in 2022.

Paris will host the summer competition in 2024, with the following winter Games scheduled for February 2026 in Italy across Milan, the Lombardy and Venetia regions and Cortina d'Ampezzo.

Here are some of the most popular suggestions for future Olympic sports from our social media pages:

Acrobatic gymnastics: This gymnastic discipline currently features in the World Games and European Games as opposed to the Olympics.

Bowls: Bowls has been included at the Commonwealth Games since the 1930s, but does not feature in the Olympics.

Darts: The World Professional Darts Championship tends to take place each winter.

Downhill mountain biking: A genre of mountain biking often featuring jumps drops and other obstacles on a steep or rough course.

Freerunning: A combination of martial arts and gymnastics. Would you like to see athletes compete?

Motorcycle speedway: Though not in the Olympics, speedway has twice featured in the World Games.

Netball: Despite becoming an IOC-recognised sport in 1995, netball has not yet been played at the Olympics.

Related content: Boris Johnson praises Team GB as Tokyo 2020 Olympics ends

Kickboxing: Reader Mark Bell called for more contact sports, such as kickboxing and mixed martial arts (MMA) to be introduced at the competition.

Snooker: A bid by the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association to have snooker included at the Tokyo Games was unsuccessful. There is a fresh bid for Paris 2024.

Squash: The racquet sport has been contested in the World Games since 2005 and is recognised by the IOC.

T20 cricket: A shorter format of cricket, with each team having a single innings, restricted to a maximum of 20 overs.

Ten-pin bowling: It appeared as a demonstration sport at the 1988 Olympics in Seoul.

Tug of war: The event featured in the Games between 1900 and 1920.

While we’re not sure any of the following reader suggestions will necessarily make the Olympic roster by Paris 2024, they certainly did bring a smile to our day!

How do you think you would perform in one of these events?

Conkers: We can imagine this getting tense ...

Egg and spoon race: A sports day favourite!

Kerby: We’d all be out testing our skills in the street.

Marbles: Just don’t compete with any of your collection favourites!

Rock, paper, scissors: Best out of three?

Three-legged race: Start shortlisting your teammates now.

Tiddlywinks: Are you choosing blue, green, red or yellow?

Wheelbarrow race: Harking back to school days, were you the driver or the barrow?

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