John Coates Says Netball’s Lack Of Gender Diversity Must Be Addressed

Netball needs to address its gender diversity at top-tier level should it want to consider being an Olympic sport according to Australian Olympic Committee’s (AOC) former president.

John Coates, who spent 31 years at the helm of AOC, told News Corp netball had a problem with men playing the sport at an elite level.

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He handed the harsh reality check as the sport looks to develop men’s and boys’ netball ahead of the 2032 Brisbane Olympic Games.

“We don’t see men playing at a high standard, starting with by being good enough to be part of the Commonwealth Games program,” he said. 

“There’s just not enough countries that play the sport at an elite level.”

Coates was a primary figure in the planning and execution of Brisbane 2032 and said netball’s Olympic bid would be affected with a lack of international interest in broad cast viewership and by being a team sport.

“While we are no longer capped at 28 sports, there is a balance of including sports and keeping athlete numbers at 10,500 … that’s where team sports like netball, and what we’ve seen with softball and baseball, struggle."

“Adding team sports would have to take numbers off the other sports — and the traditional core sports may not be prepared to take any more cuts.

“Additionally, all the sports are profiled and one of the areas considered is distribution rights and what is popular for broadcasters.

“And netball does not have the international broadcast appeal of something like the gymnastics. You would never rule anything out but 2032 is a very, very long way off for netball.”

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