This is not a joke: Breakdancing could become an Olympic sport by 2024

There’s no question that breakdancing requires great physical effort, years of practice, and much creativity. But does it seriously deserve to be an official Olympic sport?

Paris will host the games in 2024 and the French would love to see breakdancing as part of the competition. “After all,” they say, “it was featured at the Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires last year! Besides, this will make the games feel ‘more urban’ and ‘more artistic.'”

Um, okay. But this is a traditional athletic competition. What does dancing have to do with any of that?

“Dancesport!” they cry. “We have the World DanceSport Federation behind us. The organization has been pushing ballroom dancing on the Olympics for years. They’ve also subjected the physical demands of ballroom dancing to rigorous scientific study. It should be included, too.”

And it’s not just the French who are interested. The BBC asked for a quote from Team Great Britain and they came back with this: “We look forward to welcoming all new sports into the Olympic Games and will work with the relevant bodies to develop our relationships at the appropriate time. Although we did not compete in what was an invitational event at the recent Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires, we did witness the popularity of breakdancing among fans there.”

I await the IOC’s decision with bated breath.