Paris 2024: Hockey’s wasted years behind them as Hockeyroos funding restored for LA in 2028
Despite a campaign that ended in a quarters finals defeat the Hockeyroos have had their funding restored for LA after their program was slashed in the lead in to the Paris games.
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Australia’s female hockey players have had their funding restored leading into the 2028 Olympics after a 45 per cent funding cut as the Hockeyroos chart a course for Los Angeles.
Retiring captain Jane Claxton spoke of her frustration at the code’s wasted years after the harrowing quarter finals loss and her optimism at the culture built by the current squad.
The funding cut leading into the Paris Olympics cycle saw Australia’s female hockey players only able to assemble again in a centralised Perth training environment this year after two years apart in state squads.
They were paid just over $100 per week while in that decentralised environment, with coach Trinny Powell’s support staff also slashed.
While the Kookaburras trained together in Perth, Australia’s women returned to their states then came together in Olympic camps ahead of major tournaments.
Their pre-Olympic squad was also cut from 27 to 22 athletes as a result of a sub-par Tokyo campaign, with a 2021 independent review into a toxic culture of bullying and poor culture also factoring into that AIS assessment.
But an improved culture and better results including a bronze at the 2022 World Cup have seen that funding improved leading into the LA 2028 cycle.
Australia’s men were not able to defend their Olympic silver medal from Tokyo but will still have a centralised program when they again unite for their next campaign.
Australian men’s player Tom Craig was embarrassed when he was arrested for taking cocaine and while he will be put through the code’s integrity framework he will integrate back into the program when it reassembles later in the year.
Claxton had to endure the lows of an international career that saw her Rio Olympics coach sacked after exposing himself to players and coach Paul Gadoin removed weeks before Tokyo because of the bullying claims.
She truly believes in this current squad’s capacity to build towards LA and then Brisbane given many are in their early 20s.
“I think I’m definitely leaving it in a better place. And I think that’s what we want to do. We had some really tough years, probably four or five years ago, and we made drastic changes, and they needed to happen, and that’s both with players being removed, coaching staff being removed, and now it’s incredible,” she said.
“It’s an incredible environment to be a part of. And I’m so jealous of the girls, what they get to step into, leading into LA and the majority of that team out there in their mid 20s, and I’m just holding on for dear life keeping up with them.
“You can hold on to a lot of resentment to certain players that made it about themselves but I don’t think they’ll want to see it that way. And in the end, the good people stick around, and that’s what happened.
“We made it an amazing experience for the last six months, and I’m so incredibly proud to be a part of that, and know that I’m leaving a group that just so incredibly caring for each other.”
Hockey Australia chief executive David Pryles is thrilled at the improved prospects of funding leading into 2028 but aware of the challenges given the huge investment countries like China and India are putting into their programs.
“We have a costly program. We run it like an AFL club with a centralised program and if we are to compete with the Dutch, Belgians and Germans we have to invest or we won’t be on the podium.
“We do have categorisation for the LA cycle so we are planning for the LA cycle. We have to put our best foot forward . We feel like the program is in a better space both on the field as well as off it, so we are categorised for LA but we can’t rest on our laurels.
Under AIS jargon a “categorised” sport means it is most likely to contribute to Australia’s high performance targets.
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Originally published as Paris 2024: Hockey’s wasted years behind them as Hockeyroos funding restored for LA in 2028
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