Wrestling was left in a state of shock after the International Olympic Committee (IOC) made a surprise recommendation to drop the sport from the 2020 Games, Reuters said.

Contested in the first modern Olympics in 1896 and part of the ancient Games in Olympia, wrestling will now join seven other candidate sports battling for one spot in a revamped program. Board members were given a report on each of the Olympic sports which provided details on 39 criteria such as popularity, finances, tickets sold, anti-doping and governance, before a secret vote.

"There were different rounds of voting necessary to come to this conclusion," said IOC vice president Thomas Bach. "It is an extremely difficult decision to take."