World Confederation of Billiard Sports - History

History

Before the establishment of WCBS in 1992, there was no single organization representing all cue sports, which was necessary to meet the requirements of the International Olympic Committee (IOC). Moreover, cue sports did not meet the official definition of a sport. These were the main obstacles to gaining approval for the inclusion of cue sports in the Olympic Games, despite many attempts to achieve Olympic recognition that have been made since the 1950s.

In 1985, André Gagnaux of Switzerland became the new president of the UMB, the world governing body for carom billiards. In an attempt to achieve Olympic recognition, he contacted the WPBSA, the governing body of professional snooker, to discuss the possibility of forming a governing body for all cue sports. There was no world governing body for pool at that time. Nonetheless, his first attempt failed as he could not convince the WPBSA why it would be important for them to achieve IOC recognition, and what possible cooperation with the UMB could do to further their goals.

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