Yoga in the Olympics?

I've always regarded yoga as a non-competitive practice. A serene room where fellow yogis can roll out their mat, release their worries and stretch, twist and align their bodies within their personal comfort zone. Sure, I've noticed the girl in the corner who can metamorphose into a pretzel, but I don't aspire to be her. I simply want to work hard to feel good, and perhaps bring my nose to my knee.

But Bikram Choudhury, the leader of Bikram yoga -- aka hot yoga -- is lobbying to make yoga asanas competitive at the Olympic-level. At this point, he's only had an initial meeting with the International Olympic Committee. A four-time winner of the National India Yoga Championship, he has plugged American yogis into competition via the Bishnu Charan Ghosh Cup, a global competition with finals held in Los Angeles.

Interestingly, competitive yoga may be an unknown to many Americans, but it's been popular in India for over 2,000 years. Yogis perform seven asanas (postures) before a panel of judges ranking across alignment, grace, stability, confidence, balance and presence. Would you like to see yogis bow down for a gold medal in a future Olympic Games? Give us your vote in the poll below!