2028 LA Olympic Organizing Committee Releases a Surprising Games Schedule

 The Australian Olympic Committee has welcomed the LA28 Organising Committee unveiling of the full Olympic competition schedule, marking three years to go until the Opening Ceremony of the next summer Games.

The Games will officially open on Friday 14 July 2028 with a shared Opening Ceremony across both the historic LA Coliseum and the 2028 Stadium in Inglewood, with 17 action-packed days of competition concluding with the Closing Ceremony on Sunday 30 July.

The release of the detailed schedule, available by day and by session, provides a clear roadmap for athletes and fans alike as preparations accelerate toward LA28.

Key elements of the schedule include cricket starting two days ahead of the Opening Ceremony, the first medal being awarded in the triathlon at Venice Beach, and the biggest day of action being the second last day of competition, with 16 team sport medal matches and finals for 19 individual sports.

But the most notable quirk in the schedule is an historic “swap” between swimming and athletics, with swimming taking place in the second week and athletics in the first.

The swimming will be held in the same venue as the Opening Ceremony – known as 2028 Stadium – leaving organisers just a week to convert it for competition. The last time athletics featured in week one, was in Mexico City in 1968.

Australia’s Olympic Chef de Mission for LA28, Anna Meares, said the release brings the dreams of athletes sharply into focus.

Meares said “The publication of the LA28 schedule makes the Olympic dream feel more real than ever for our athletes,” Ms Meares said.

“To be able to visualise the exact day their event is happening is a powerful motivator.

“For every athlete working toward selection in the Australian Olympic Team, this milestone gives clarity, focus and inspiration.

With the Games coming to a close on 30 July, LA2028 will be the earliest Summer Games finish since Paris 1924.

The LA28 Games will feature 351 medal events, 22 more than Paris 2024, with an exciting mix of new and returning sports.

Baseball, Softball, and Lacrosse return to the Olympic programme, with baseball starting on day one and finishing on day six, and softball starting competition on day nine and closing on day 14. Lacrosse will take place in the second week.

Flag Football and Squash, which both make their Olympic debut, will both start on day one.

Cricket, which returns to the Olympic program for the first time since 1900, will start two days ahead of the Opening Ceremony and will be one of the many team events finishing on the major day of action on day 15.

LA28 will also feature new events within some sports, with new mixed gender formats for the first time in Archery, Athletics, Golf, Gymnastics and Table Tennis. Coastal Rowing has also been added to the program of sports, as well as swimming having new 50m events in backstroke, butterfly and breaststroke, on top of the existing 50m freestyle event, creating more opportunities for Australian swimmers in the pool.