The Golden Rule

By David

Most of what Swimming New Zealand does and says is hot air. Remember this gem from their “Whole of Sport Plan” – “Swimming New Zealand is recognized as having one of the leading sustainable programs in New Zealand for consistently producing high performance swimming.” If Glasgow is an example of “producing high performance swimming” their definition of high performance needs attention. Saying stuff like that and underperforming makes them look puerile and leads me to the subject of this Swimwatch post.

I imagine many readers will have noticed the analysis that goes on after a Commonwealth or Olympic Games. How will a sport’s performance affect its future funding? Before the Games judo got no funding but won five medals. In the four year prior to the Games swimming got $8,000,000 and won two medals. Will that paradox mean judo will get a fat Miskimmin cheque and swimming will get less? A recent Stuff article on the subject had 76 comments debating the merits of funding Swimming New Zealand.

This week the Herald on Sunday’s Sport Editor, Paul Lewis, also discussed the future funding prospects of New Zealand swimming. Here is an abbreviated version of what Lewis had to say.

Lauren Boyle’s Commonwealth Games success, has underlined a recurring problem — what to do about New Zealand swimming? If not for her, New Zealand elite swimming would be without a medal at these Games.

Since the all-too-public dysfunctions within swimming, the national body (spurred on by High Performance Sport New Zealand) have undertaken a big review and brought in new people, a new CEO and high performance director Luis Villanueva. One of Canada’s best swimmers ever, Alex Baumann, is now CEO of HPSNZ. But even with all this heavyweight activity and personnel, New Zealand swimming remains waterlogged. Quite what this will mean when it comes to funding time is anybody’s guess.

It’s a puzzling decline. Swimming NZ have had their centralised programme at the Millennium Institute for years, dating back to coach Jan Cameron. But that is a long way from a swim squad with a genuinely promising future. Swimming NZ has little to show for $8 million of taxpayer investment over the past four years.

It’s a tough problem. Baumann and his team at HPSNZ have a worrying time ahead of them when deciding on funding. It would not be easy for any former international swimmer to cut funding to the sport which made him famous. But it seems likely. Yet it’s enormously difficult to see how cutting funding is going to breathe life back into New Zealand swimming.

So what would a cut in funding mean? Bugger all is the answer. When was the last time your club or mine saw any of swimming’s $8,000,000? Real swimming does not get a penny of Sport New Zealand’s money. Baumann could take his money and catch a first class flight back to Canada and none of us would notice the difference. Oh, twenty bureaucrats in the Swimming New Zealand office would have to find real jobs. Renford, Villanueva and Lyles would have to hand in their cars and join Baumann at Auckland airport. The swimmers at the Millennium Centre would struggle while they found a domestic or foreign club. But that dose of reality and common purpose would do them and us a power of good.

I would argue swimming in New Zealand could well be better off without Miskimmin’s money. No Renford, no Villanueva, no Lyles, no Millennium Institute – it’s all good news so far. A sport forced to live within its means; a sport free of the burden of being a state beneficiary. I have never understood why the Coalition of Regions was so spooked by the thought of Miskimmin pulling his money out of swimming. I would have thought that positive would have spurred the Coalition to greater effort. They had nothing to lose, but their chains.

The reality is that nothing would scare Miskimmin and Baumann more than an independent sport of swimming. I’ve never understood why journalists like Paul Lewis write stories that imply a sport without Miskimmin’s money is a sport doomed. Success comes from performance; not Miskimmin’s money. Peter Snell and Danyon Loader seemed to do alright without Miskimmin. Money does not buy performance. It never has.

Besides the last thing Sport New Zealand want is a successful main stream sport that does not depend on their money. You see the next step is the thought that Miskimmin and his mates might also be surplus to requirements; costs that we could well do without. We have the power. It has always been true. Miskimmin, Baumann, Renford, Villanueva and Lyles need us way more than we need them. We have the power. We need to use it.

But even if we, as we should, asked Miskimmin to take his money and leave us alone there is no way on God’s good earth Miskimmin would allow swimming to become independent; to stand on its own two feet. He and Baumann are too personally invested. If the current swimming setup fails, they fail. Swimming is their baby. They implemented the current policy. They hired the Australian CEO, the Spanish High Performance Director and the English coach. They spent their money as they wanted. Their commitment is total. They cannot allow a revolution. They cannot tolerate dissent. Independence will be crushed.

Miskimmin’s and Baumann’s power depends on how the importance of their money is perceived; depends on their policy of centralization being successful. For that reason alone they will pour money at swimming, irrespective of results. The pathetic Glasgow result simply does not matter. Miskimmin and Baumann’s cash will keep on coming. You see that cash is not only spent on swimming; way more importantly it is an investment in the personal credibility of the funders. A dollar spent on swimming is a dollar invested in their personal job security.

Certainly swimming would be better off without Miskimmin’s money. If Miskimmin withdrew the government’s financial support, ninety-nine percent of the sport would notice no change. Sadly, though, it is not going to happen. The self-interest of swimming’s “Mazda set” and the personal commitment of Sport New Zealand will not allow swimming to grow up. Independent self-sufficiency will take a revolution. Perhaps the New Zealand Swim Coaches Association is where it should start. Bring on the revolution.

  • Swimfan

    Wow I read on the Stuff website that Lauren broke the 1500m short course world record. My concern is that the article stated that Lauren swam in Wellington Short Course Championships and that the time needs to be ratified by FINA along with a survey of the pool. The survey of the pool has been worried as stated in your previous articles, I hope not for Lauren’s sake.

    Looking forward to her swim in the Pan Pacs she could be peaking at the right time to give Katie Ledecky a run for her money.

  • h2tk

    David, the debate on the Wellington Pool already rages! You get mentioned in dispatches. http://www.swimvortex.com

    What a bugger for Lauren though that it was done in that pool. But SNZ and Wellington only have themselves to blame.