Withdrawals leave N.Z. Games team in totters

Press, 7 June 1980, Page 1

Withdrawals leave N.Z. Games team in totters

New Zealand’s team for the Olympic Games in Moscow was in tatters yesterday as another 37 athletes withdrew, leaving only eight competitors of the original team of 99. The cycling team of eight was withdrawn yesterday morning and then in mid-afternoon the athletics and rowing squads of seven and 19, respectively, announced that they were joining the cyclists. Last evening Martin Brill,, the New Zealand Amateur Fencing Association’s Games representative, pulled out and hard on the heels of this came a statement by the Judo Federation that its two judoka would not make the trip to Moscow. Only four shooters, three canoeists, and one modern pentathlete remain in New Zealand’s team for the Games. The withdrawal of the two New Zealand judoka was announced last evening by the chairman of the Judo Federation, Mr Harry O’Rourke, of Auckland. The Prime Minister (Mr Muldoon) in Berne, Switzerland, yesterday welcomed the news of''mass withdrawals from New Zealand’s Olympic team. “I think it’s the right decision,” he said. The Acting Prime Minister (Mr Taiboys) last evening commended what he described as the responsible attitude of the five sports in deciding not to attend the Games. . The Olympia Association’s deputy chairman,Mr Roy Dutton, said from Raumati last evening that .there was no immediate prospect ’of his executive making a decision to withdraw the remaining jteam members. “My feeling iswe must, be supportive toi those

sports still left,” said Mr Dutton. "I wouldn’t rule out the possibility of the remaining sports being able to go if that was their wish.“Today’s decisions leave me shattered. It is terrible. These might be the last Olympics New Zealand could have competed in. “The pressure in the end was just too great, with worries over some competitors’ jobs, and individual threats on their safety,” Mr Dutton said. The gradual disintegration of the team, which began several weeks ago with the withdrawal of the yachtsmen in protest against Soviet actions in Afghanistan, has occurred in spite of several two-to-one votes by the New Zealand Olympic and Commonwealth Games Association not ta boycott Moscow. The most recent vote was only a week ago. But the pressure of Government and public pleas not to go to Moscow, plus? threats of harm to some of the chosen competitors, caused the withdrawal decisions. The Amateur Athletic Association cited “intimidation” of competitors and other reasons when it announced withdrawal of seven athletes from the Moscow-bound team. The athletics squad included John Walker, winner of the 1976. Olympic 1500 metres,, and Dick Quax, silver medallist in the 5000 metres the same year.' >. . \- The; announcement, .authorised by the association's;, chairman, Mr Ces Blazey, was made by the secretary, Mr lan Boyd: He said, the association was still firmly - opposed io the Olympics boycott. ’“But because of the in-

timidation of the competitors which is- affecting their preparation for the Games, the reduction in the size of the New Zealand team, and the longterm financial implications to the organisation of athletics in New Zealand if

the team goes to Moscow, the association has decided very reluctantly to withdraw its. section from the Olympics team.” Mr Boyd; 1 declined to spell but details of alleged intimidation “because it would be unfair to the athletes” but he said they had been harrassed by public statements and abusive private telephone calls.

In addition to Walker and Quax, athletes in the

squad were Mike O’Rourke, Kim Robertson, Kevin Ryan, Mike Parker, and Karen Page. Walker, O’Rourke, and Robertson are still in New Zealand: Quax and Ryan are . in the United States; Page is training in Ca-

lada; and Parker is in

Announcing the cyclists’ withdrawal, their national president, Mr Bill Main, said there was no way New Zealand cyclists were going to be called traitors to their own country. , All eight cycling associations had been asked, for their opinions, before .the final decision was made on Thursday evening to with-

draw the eight New Zealand riders and four officials. ■

The decision of the Games association not to use Government funds or sponsored money for the trip to Moscow did have a bearing on the withdrawal, Mr Main said. But finance was secondary and supplementary to the main reasons for withdrawal. Participation could be seen as endorsement of Russia’s military invasion of Afghanistan, and it was quite clear that the Government and business firms did not want New Zealand to participate. They were better able to evaluate the political and economic repercussions, Mr Main said. He instanced the lucrative Middle East and American, trade markets. - ’ , ■ . Asked why cycling had left it so long before finally’ withdrawing, Mr Main said it was a culmination of all the factors, including threats to the lives of Olympic competitors and officials, plus police.. protection’s . being given. < ’ - ; The former chairman of the Amateur Cycling Association, Mr Bob Pratt, said the decision was a direct result of the withdrawal of sponsorship and Government money. . “We decided two days ago that if the money was withdrawn we-would have to pull out,” Mr Pratt said. “If we went we would be left' with a serious shortfair of 'cash—an extra $ll,OOO to $14,000 on top of what we already have to pay.” The Rowing Association made its decision day upon hearing .that the athletics and cycling squads had been withdrawn. ■ ; i ’ The rowing , .council’s statement said the New

Zealand rowers’ participation at Moscow “would have again reminded the competitiors of the freedom we long to preserve.”

“New Zealand rowing has been disappointed at the tremendous depths which have been reached in applying pressures against our participation at these Olympics. Mr Tay Wilson, rowing’s chairman and the over-all manager named for Moscow, said the three rowing crews — an eight, and a coxed and coxless four — would still go overseas today as originally planned. They would compete in a regatta at Lucerne next week-end, in the West German championships the week-end after, and in either the Dutch championships or the Royal Henley regatta ■ in early July. . Shooting, it seems, is playing a waiting game. The Christchurch smallbore marksman, lan Ballinger, a bronze medallist at the 1968 Olympics, heard two days ago that the two smallbore shooters (Ballinger, and-i Jack Scott, of Timaru) had been withdrawn. Ballinger, a veteran of the last three Olympic Games, even cancelled his medical examination. However, the final say on the matter rests with the New Zealand Shooting Federation, which incorporates the various branches of shooting, and the latest report is that the four shooters — Ballinger, Scott, Wayne Williams (running boar), and John Woolley (skeet) — are going to Moscow. Ballinger said yesterday that he was not worried about the decision either way. “I am not going to pull out, the final choice is with the New Zealand

Federation and I will abide by what decision it makes.” Scott, who partnered Ballinger at the 1974 Commonwealth Games in Christchurch, said that he had spoken to the smallbore spokesman (Mike Watt) on Wednesday evening and that he was told that the shooters were, still in. He believes that the shooting squad and the entire New Zealand team should have gone. He said: “There has been a lot of intervention in . other countries by those calling for the boycott. What about the 38,000 American troops in South Korea and Vietnam, the C.I.A. in Chile, the East Timor thing, and now the Yanks in the New Hebrides.” Scott said that he had no intention of pulling out of the shooting team. Within hours of the announcement that no Government or sponsors’ money would be used for travel to the Olympics, Scott, although not

naming the source, said that he had been guaranteed the $l2OO which had to be raised for his trip. The fate of Woolley, now living in Melbourne, will most likely be decided at a meeting of the New Zealand Clay' Target Association next week. “Very disappointed, yet relieved” was the comment of Mr Ivor EndicottDavies, of Christchurch, after learning last evening that the Judo Federation had withdrawn its two judoka. Mr Endicott-Davies had been appointed coach. Those sports that have withdrawn are archery, athletics, cycling, equest-' rian, fencing; gymnastics, hockey (both men and women), judo, rowing, swimming, weight-lifting, yachting. Those still in last evening were:— Canoeing: lan Ferguson (Auckland), -Alan Thompson (Gisborne), Geoff Walker (Christchurch). Modern pentathlon: Brian Newth (Wellington), . Shooting: Four (as listed above). . ... .