The IOC recognizes sports, disciplines, and events. Disciplines are sort of sub-sections of sports but until May 2026 these were not well-defined by the IOC, when it announced a formal definition at a press conference after the IOC Executive Board meeting. Many sports do not have multiple disciplines. The classic example of a multi-disciplinary sport is Aquatics. Most people would consider swimming as a separate sport at the Olympics, but it is considered only a discipline within the sport of Aquatics, along with the other Aquatics disciplines of Artistic Swimming, Diving, High Diving, Marathon (Open-Water) Swimming, and Water Polo.
The IOC defines a sport as one which is a physical activity governed by an International Sports Federation (IF) recognized by the IOC. A discipline is one or more events within a sport that requires either a dedicated field of play or a significant modification of a shared field of play with another Olympic discipline, generally involving a separate group of athletes. An event is a specific competition in a sport or discipline that results in a ranking and gives rise to the awarding of medals and diplomas.
