Warning to NZ on Olympic change

Reporter·NZ Herald·

9 Dec, 2014 04:00 PM3 mins to read

Door opens to give niche sports a shot at the big time

Changes to the Olympic events programme come as a boost to the fledgling sport of competitive climbing.

The International Olympic Committee approved the changes in Monaco on Monday, adding new sports to the Olympic programme after Tokyo 2020.

This opens the door for niche sports such as competitive climbing, skateboarding and inline skating.

"It is encouraging that this is happening and very exciting," said Climbing New Zealand secretary David Sanders.

"There are a lot of strong young climbers coming through here and we are striving to build up the sport.

"We have regional clubs throughout the country and they are getting stronger."

Climbing was shortlisted for Tokyo 2020. It missed out, but was showcased in the Nanjing Youth Games this year.

New Zealand IOC member Barry Maister said New Zealand had to ensure it was able to compete in these less traditional events.

"We are definitely going to see the Olympic programme change," he said. "Now, there will be a review after every games and the opportunity to bring new sports in.

"From a New Zealand point of view we have to be vigilant to the fact that new sports are likely to appear, and we need to be prepared for those."

Sanders believes the changes will help the growth of New Zealand competitive climbing, which is proving popular in the junior ranks with around 150 competitors.

"If it were to become an Olympic sport or get shortlisted again then I can see that it would be very encouraging for us," he said.

"New Zealand has a long history of recreation climbing, but the sport climbing scene is young here. It's a tiny sport here, so we're very much in the development stage."

The sport was much bigger in countries such as France, Austria and Switzerland and the United States.

"We mostly have youth competitors so we send teams off to the World Championships. This year, for example, we sent a team of 13 to New Caledonia and next year the event is going to be in Italy."

Maister said mixed gender events should also become a focus for our competitors as they grow in popularity with Olympic organisers after successful trials at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games.

"Mixed gender events are something that we could prepare for in New Zealand because there is certainly a trend to encourage mixed gender," he said.

A mixed triathlon was held at the Glasgow games.

"That's going to happen, and likewise variations on traditional games, basketball three on three, hockey five on five," Maister said.

"From a New Zealand perspective we need to be mindful of the trends in world sport and be well positioned so we are not caught when changes are made to the programme."