Eight Olympic Sports Get Funding Slashed

Eight UK Olympic sports have had their funding cut down for London 2012, triggering concern that Team GB will not be able to uphold its expected goal of competing in every sport at next Games.

Due to a budget shortfall of £50m as a result of a failure to get any private sector funding, fencing, handball, shooting, table tennis, volleyball/beach volleyball, water polo, weightlifting and wrestling have all suffered cuts.

Four Paralympic sports – fencing, goalball, volleyball and women’s wheelchair basketball – will also be getting less than expected.

Water polo will have to make do with 50% of the funds it originally was to receive. Now with its budget being £1.4m, the sport’s leaders have warned that they might have to pull out of London 2012. Handball and table tennis will also see their funds halved.

UK Sport attempted to ease the blow by allowing the sports to receive their funds all at once, instead of spread throughout the four-year span up to 2013.

It has also pinned hopes on the private sector coming through with cash for these sports, though this is questionable considering London 2012 has already had difficulties tapping into this area for potential funding.

Additionally, UK Sport secured £1.8m from Sports Aid’s talented athlete scholarship scheme to potentially fund promising athletes from the sports that have suffered cuts.

Although these 12 sports have received cuts to funding, not all sports suffered a decrease. The revised budget also saw increases in funding for 28 sports, including large boosts to basketball, synchronised swimming, taekwondo, boxing, archery and hockey.