With the 2020 Tokyo Games now wrapped up, and following the announcement on July 21 that Brisbane would be the 2032 host city, talk has seemingly shifted to what new sports could feature at future events.
After positive reviews surrounding the debut of skateboarding and surfing at this summer's Games, many sporting bodies have signalled their intent to bid to become a recognised Olympic sport.
Netball Australia has indicated it would push for the sport's inclusion in 2032, with more than 20 million playing the game worldwide in more than 72 countries. It has been an Commonwealth sport since 1998.
The International Cricket Council and International Rugby League are also expected to make bids to see their sports included in the 2028 and 2032 Olympic Games respectively.
Echuca District Netball Association president Betty McCoomb said she would love to see netball represented at the Olympic Games in the future.
“I loved the skateboarding and the BMX this year, but if those sports can go in, then something as dynamic and physical as netball needs to be out there,” McCoomb said.
Watching their first Olympic Games last month, the trio of Waterson, Orr and Chambers, who are all 14 or under, had their first real taste of what the Games was all about.
While gymnastic, swimming, diving, and track and field were at the top of their must-watch sports, the group agreed they would be excited if netball was showcased on the world stage.
“It would be good to have it; it would be a sport I'd probably enjoy the most,” Lotti said.
One of the biggest barriers facing netball is the International Olympic Committee's insistence of gender balance, though McCoomb believes the number of men in the game had increased rapidly in recent years.
“I know the Victorian men's teams couldn't go to their Australian titles because of COVID-19, which is two years in a row,” she said.
“They have some amazing players, and they do men's and mixed. It's pretty big.”
McCoomb believes the benefits of having netball as an Olympic sport would extend far and wide.
“We try to use and encourage our girls that there is a pathway to get somewhere in netball, and that netball can take you wherever you want to go,” she said.
“There has been some great girls from Echuca who have gone on and done well with netball.
“But to be able to be an Olympian and have your name up their with some of those names you hear and grew up with; I think if netball got in there, it would open it up to so many more countries out there that didn't know it was a sport they could play.
“It would be great if we could get it. We've got a whole core of kids who are the perfect age in another 11 or 12 years, that they could be aiming for Brisbane.”
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