Closed-shop start to new era of transparency
PLUS: The Week That Was and the Weekend That Will Be.
Sports administration can be a dry, political subject, so weeks that are dominated by reports into national sporting organisations and the latest panacea for the problems are hardly edge-of-the-seat material for fans.
There is, however, one more thing that needs to be said before we move on to the weekend scores and scorers: if the proposed sports integrity agency is going to have any chance of addressing athlete well-being concerns it has to be totally divorced from Sport NZ and High Performance Sport NZ, particularly in this set-up phase.
Already there are worrying rumours (and at this stage that’s all they are), that a current Sport NZ executive has been “suggested” as a candidate to lead the new entity.
Madness. If the Government wants the “integrity” part of the equation to have any meaning it cannot play into the following tropes, spelled out clearly in Mike Heron QC’s report into cycling:
“Aotearoa NZ’s small sporting community tends to recruit or ‘recycle’ personnel from within ‘the system’. This was referred to as ‘shoulder tapping’, the ‘old boys’ club’, and ‘jobs for mates’. We perceive an over-reliance on bringing in recruits that people already know (even, in some cases, where past performance has been suboptimal). This curtails attempts to ensure diversity, introduce new ideas, and in some instances maintains and rewards poor behaviour.”
There was some irony, then, when it was announced that former New Zealand Olympic Committee Kereyn Smith would take up a role at Cycling New Zealand as a transformation director, her tab reportedly being paid for by HPSNZ.
There is no question Smith is a highly capable operator, but as one source told The Bounce there is also little doubt that the NZOC’s easily manipulated and athlete-unfriendly selection policies did more harm to individual well-being in the high-performance sector than any other single factor.
So, yeah, this “new” era of openness and transparency in cycling starts with a closed-shop appointment.
Plus ça change.
On the surface, a sports integrity agency that encompasses welfare issues seems a smart, overdue play.
If it’s in any way perceived to be an adjunct of existing government sports agencies, it will lack all credibility. The search for the right leaders should go far and wide, and it should look well beyond the narrow confines of sport.
THE WEEK THAT WAS
In the week that Jake Daniels, 17, broke barriers by becoming the first openly gay professional active player in the United Kingdom in 30 years, Idrissa Gueye refused to play for Paris St-Germain because he would not wear the rainbow symbol on their strip. Yes, we still have some way to go.
The Guardian Football Weekly’s discussion on Daniels is excellent, as is, in the same episode, Philippe Auclair’s brutal takedown of Saudi ownership, Fifa corruption and PSG’s hypocrisy.
The Spinoff’s new series of Scratched: Aotearoa’s Lost Sporting Legends has dropped. The first episode is Erin Baker, the phenomenal and preternaturally tough triathlete.
“I’ve never been funny, or fun,” she says early in her story, which is brutally self aware.
It’s this quote later on, however, that rings loudest, in this week of all weeks (see lead item).
“To get through a sporting career and have a somewhat normal life is a big deal. I don’t remember years of triathlon, what events and dates and times; I wouldn’t care less if no one remembered any of that. For me it’s always just being about a fair person. A fair, hard working, good woman.”
It’s a ripper. Watch and then go back through the archives of the first two series. You’ll love it - promise.
This is a nice profile on an NFL player, Ali Marpet, who protected Tom Brady on the field, but couldn’t be any different to Brady off it.
THE WEEKEND THAT WILL BE
The PGA Championship is renowned for having the strongest field of the four majors and with Ryan Fox (above) in there and starting a little better than solidly, I might even buck my convention of waiting until the final round to engage with golf.
The PGA Championship, Southern Hills, tomorrow-Monday mornings, Sky Sport 6
The English Premier League season concludes in the early hours of Monday morning, with all matches kicking off at the same time. A couple of months ago I wrote it off as a one-horse race and while Manchester City are still heavily favoured needing just a win at home against Aston Villa, Liverpool have at least made it interesting. It’s a different kind of shoot out at the bottom, with Leeds and Burnley fighting to avoid relegation.
Manchester City v Aston Villa, Etihad Stadium; Liverpool v Wolverhampton Wanderers, Anfield; Burnley v Newcastle, Turf Moor; Brentford v Leeds, Community Stadium, all games Monday 3am, Spark Sport
Not going anywhere near the first four games of the Super Rugby slate this weekend, but might try to catch parts, if not all, of the final two.
Brumbies v Blues, Canberra, tomorrow 9.45pm; Highlanders v Waratahs, Dunedin, Sunday 3.35pm, both Sky Sport 1
Yes, I’m a sucker, but I want to see if the Warriors learned anything, not so much from the dismal first half, but from the spirited second 40 against Souths.
St George Illawarra v NZ Warriors, Sydney, tomorrow 5pm, Sky Sport 4
Quick hits: There’s a bit happening, including the return of Supercars to Winton (Sky), the NBA conference finals - Boston v Miami, Golden State v Dallas - and the NHL playoffs (ESPN), the Spanish GP in Barcelona (Spark), and the ANZ Championship is rapidly reaching its pointy end (Sky).