With 2024 being an Olympics and Paralympics year – the latter having just finished – it’s a good time to consider sports policy and independence.
Sport has long been one of the most important pillars of Wales’ cultural identity. As one of the main vehicles by which Wales acts independently abroad, sport also has some importance when it comes to “soft power”, “brand awareness” and low-level diplomacy (Part III).
That’s all well and good for athletes, governing bodies, sponsors and politicians – but what about the rest of us?
Part one (of three) will concentrate on sport and exercise as a public health matter.
Strong grassroots/club culture
There is no shortage of sports clubs in Wales, with a strong volunteer spirit amongst administrators and committee members. There will be mixed success on and off the pitch, of course – but sports clubs are often a key focal point of a community’s social life.
Sports clubs may offer the only communal meeting area in smaller villages. They enable inter-generational social opportunities (administrators and committee members acting like “elders”) and will play an obvious role in cutting anti-social behaviour by providing activities for young people.
Understanding the importance of Sports Diplomacy (Part III)
Sport has probably done more than anything else to promote Wales to the world. It’s often the only means by which Wales is represented in our own right on the international stage in the absence of control over foreign policy.
It’s perhaps the only example where Wales is “independent” (to an extent) when we have no right to be. The national football and rugby teams shouldn’t exist; we’re just fortunate that they were formed as their respective sports were being codified and professionalised.
It’s right to question the importance the Welsh Government and civil society place on tagging along on “junkets” when Wales takes part in a major international tournament. However, it’s one of the few ways we get to promote Wales as Wales.
Coaching infrastructure and talent-spotting (Part III)
Sports governing bodies and selection committees usually get it right when shortlisting and coaching emerging elite athletes.
All of the major sports have elite talent pathways for domestic and international representation.
Sport Wales’ Elite Cymru programme – backed by National Lottery funding – supports athletes with the potential to be competitive at the Olympics and Paralympics (often in conjunction with UK Sport), who represent sports other than those which receive direct grant funding.
At the elite level, training and coaching facilities are pretty good for a country of Wales’ size. The FAW’s Dragon Park in Newport – developed with UEFA support – has become one of the most important coaching academies in European football.
We don’t expect elite athletes to stay in Wales for their entire careers
Contrary to popular opinion, we are fairly outlooking in Wales.
Many of our top professional athletes and coaches ply a trade outside Wales – probably a majority outside of rugby union, though that’s me guessing.
While the Brain Drain damages the economy, encouraging our best professional athletes to leave Wales (perhaps even the UK) is a good thing when it comes to sports. That’s especially so where a professional base in Wales can’t be sustained, or where an athlete can’t compete at the highest possible level week-to-week by staying in Wales (Part II).
I don’t particularly like the idea of Wales serving as a stepping stone/feeder-club-on-steroids. Nonetheless, the best-of-the-best have to be able to move on to a higher standard of competition to push themselves or get more regular playing time.
Support for walking & cycling (in spirit)
Walking is one of the safest and cheapest forms of exercise – and can provide similar benefits to running (with a lower risk of injuries).
Not everyone (especially some drivers) likes investing in pedestrians and cyclists. Also, as mentioned earlier, measures such as the default 20mph speed limit in built-up areas have prompted fierce opposition.
As things stand, the Active Travel Act 2013 will be a “noble failure” because despite increased investment and legal duties, walking and cycling rates haven’t changed much since its introduction. Like it or not, 11 years on is a good point to judge the direction of travel and the car remains king.
That shouldn’t mean capital investment in walking and cycling infrastructure should be cut back.
It perhaps needs to be more carefully focused and demand-led (particularly to/from schools) than the more scattergun approach the Act’s mapping exercise has resulted in. Every local authority has a long list of “desired” schemes, but very few of them can realistically be delivered.
