Sengstock welcomes Crawford Report

Basketball Australia CEO Larry Sengstock has welcomed the Crawford Report into sports funding and reform that was released today by the Federal Government, ending speculation about the content of the report and allowing for open debate on the proposed recommendations.

Basketball was included alongside swimming, tennis, cricket, cycling, the football codes, netball, golf, hockey, surfing and surf lifesaving as one of the most popular sports in Australia that contributes to the “national ethos”.

With the cornerstone of the review based on the premise that the success of Australian sport should not only take into consideration our sporting achievements on the international stage but also measure the participation rates in community sport, basketball is meeting these criteria.

Ranked number 3 in the world of 213 basketball-playing nations and with the Opals current women’s world champions, basketball boasts participation numbers that are the envy of other sports with more than 600,000 registered participants nationwide.

It is that combination of Australian basketball’s international success as well as its strength at community level that Sengstock believes puts the sport he administers in good stead.

“We were certainly relieved to see that there will be no reduction in funding to elite sport or the sport sector as a whole,” Sengstock said.

“Winning three medals from the four teams we sent to Beijing, we are obviously a strong sport at the elite level and have achieved great things in the international arena, but we are also very strong at the grassroots level in Australia.

“Some of the recommendations will no doubt inspire some earnest debate allowing the Minister to then frame her response appropriately.”