Times article ridicules 2016 aspirations

A disappointing article last week in The Times by Giles Smith took a sideswipe at squash's Olympic aspirations.

The article, about the role of persuasive language in winning bids for sporting events, suggests that squash has no chance in the 2016 vote because no one wants to watch it.

An unnecessary remark given the main context of the article - but why not publish my response?

The article concerned Barack Obama's letter to FIFA in support of the US's bid for the 2018 football World Cup, and suggested that golf should hire Obama to help their cause.

It goes on:

"Or what about squash? (It's up for Olympic consideration, too.) Actually, maybe not. There are limits. I'm not sure even Martin Luther King at the peak of his powers could convince the International Olympic Committee that anyone wants to watch squash."

My reply (limited to a fixed number of characters - I should have copied and pasted it) pointed out that if squash make the Olympics it would receive the media support it deserves in this country, its profile would be raised and we (the Times is a British paper) might win some more Olympic medals!

True, the main focus of the article is about football, but even if my comment and those of other squash fans (Squash site invited others to respond) were not deemed worthy of being publishable, hopefully a point might have been made.

The Times article