Changes

Because women teams have competed in basketball at the Olympic Summer Games since 1976, it is highly unlikely that netball will ever become an Olympic sport.  The IOC has selected its sports through 2016, and netball has never been selected for inclusion in the Olympics.

Because women teams have competed in basketball at the Olympic Summer Games since 1976, it is highly unlikely that netball will ever become an Olympic sport.  The IOC has selected its sports through 2016, and netball has never been selected for inclusion in the Olympics.

Historically, the IFNA and national netball governing bodies have been staffed exclusively by women with little professionalization or commercialization. As sports marketing has evolved into an international and highly commercial industry, there has been political conflict over the leadership and funding of netball. Reformers have advocated changing the presentation of the game to emphasize athleticism and to make the game more spectator friendly. However, radical feminists have argued that because the game is mostly played by women and has a large number of women administrators, it should be entitled to funding and inclusion in the Olympics on the basis of gender equity regardless of its international obscurity.

Historically, the IFNA and national netball governing bodies have been staffed exclusively by women with little professionalization or commercialization. As sports marketing has evolved into an international and highly commercial industry, there has been political conflict over the leadership and funding of netball. Reformers have advocated changing the presentation of the game to emphasize athleticism and to make the game more spectator friendly. However, radical feminists have argued that because the game is mostly played by women and has a large number of women administrators, it should be entitled to funding and inclusion in the Olympics on the basis of gender equity regardless of its international obscurity.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Taylor |first=Tracy |title=Gendering Sport: The Development of Netball in Australia |url=http://www.la84foundation.org/SportsLibrary/SportingTraditions/2001/st1801/ST1801i.pdf |journal=Sporting Traditions, Journal of the Australian Society for Sports History |volume=18 |issue=1 |year=2001 |month=November |pages=57–74 |ref=harv}}

Starting in February 2011, radical feminists have tried to boost public awareness of netball by creating articles on [[Wikipedia]] to create the false impression that Netball was in fact a sport that is played in the Olympics.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Netball_and_the_Olympic_Movement&oldid=420767140|date=March 26, 2011|title=Netball at the Olympics|publisher=Wikimedia Foundation|first=Laura|last=Hale|accessdate=2011-06-28}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Netball_in_the_Cook_Islands&oldid=419783990|date=March 20, 2011|title=Netball in the Cook Islands|publisher=Wikimedia Foundation|first=Laura|last=Hale|accessdate=2011-06-28}}</ref>

Starting in February 2011, radical feminists have tried to boost public awareness of netball by creating articles on [[Wikipedia]] to create the false impression that Netball was in fact a sport that is played in the Olympics.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Netball_and_the_Olympic_Movement&oldid=420767140|date=March 26, 2011|title=Netball at the Olympics|publisher=Wikimedia Foundation|first=Laura|last=Hale|accessdate=2011-06-28}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Netball_in_the_Cook_Islands&oldid=419783990|date=March 20, 2011|title=Netball in the Cook Islands|publisher=Wikimedia Foundation|first=Laura|last=Hale|accessdate=2011-06-28}}</ref>