GAMES SPORTS CHOSEN

Press, Volume CXV, Issue 33928, 22 August 1975, Page 1

GAMES SPORTS CHOSEN

The four main sports; for the first New Zea-: land Games this yearhave been retained, and; a fresh one added, fori the second Games at Christchurch in January, 1977, Those retained are athletics,; swimming (which includes; diving), weight-lifting, and; men’s basketball. The addition is gymnastics. Gymnastics has replaced' water polo, which, although bracketed with swimming, was, in effect, a fifth sport this year. However, gymnastics has been chosen subject to its meeting certain financial requirements. If it cannot comply, boxing will take its place. The sports were approved, at a meeting of the Games i organising committee last! 'evening. They were recom-i mended by the executive. Twenty sports sought inclusion, although athletics'

and swimming were auto-; matic selections. ■ The executive based its I recommendations on several iconsiderations, the main ones being costs, the standard i of New Zealand competition, and the easy availability of qualified officials. The only opposition to the 'list of proposed sports came I from the swimming repreIsentative (Mr S. Williams).; He said that the national: association administered and promoted four disciplines — swimming, diving, water polo, and synchronised swimming — as one collective sport, and it would be disappointed that no place had been found for either water polo or synchronised swimming. Mr Williams said that if; water polo had been ruled: idut because of the costs of' i bringing teams to New ZeaHand, then all team sports —' land he mentioned basketball' ; — should be excluded. The chairman (Mr H. C. *Blazey) replied that at the

; first Games the cost of bringing the water polo teams into the country had been $54,000 and the return from the sport only $7500. Basketball,' he added, had more than paid its way.

“It is purely a matter of finances,” said Mr Blazey. “We lost money the first time and the Games cannot survive if losses continue. We cannot afford to carry a sport which does not pay its way.”