Teh One Who Knocks
01-17-2012, 11:51 PM
Sky News
http://i.imgur.com/DY79O.jpg
Experts in New Zealand are calling for sheep shearing to become an Olympic sport, arguing that top wool-clippers are world-class athletes.
The New Zealand Farmers Federation claims shearing is now a bona fide sport that deserves international recognition.
The call comes as the World Shearing Championships are set to be held in Mastertown, on New Zealand's North Island, in March.
Federation spokesman Jeanette Maxwell said in a statement: "Surely, time has come to elevate shearing's sporting status to the ultimate world stage?
"One way would be to make shearing a demonstration sport at a Commonwealth Games, if not the Olympics itself."
Ms Maxwell said competitive shearers clip up to 700 sheep over an eight-hour period - a feat that has been likened to running two marathons back-to-back.
"I can also testify to the physical effort shearing takes... (Top shearers) are athletes who take it to another level," she said.
The New Zealand's government's elite sports funding body SPARC already recognises shearing as a sport, providing it with grants to help run competitions.
New Zealand has a human population of about 4.4 million which is outnumbered by a national sheep flock of around 40 million, according to Statistics New Zealand.
http://i.imgur.com/DY79O.jpg
Experts in New Zealand are calling for sheep shearing to become an Olympic sport, arguing that top wool-clippers are world-class athletes.
The New Zealand Farmers Federation claims shearing is now a bona fide sport that deserves international recognition.
The call comes as the World Shearing Championships are set to be held in Mastertown, on New Zealand's North Island, in March.
Federation spokesman Jeanette Maxwell said in a statement: "Surely, time has come to elevate shearing's sporting status to the ultimate world stage?
"One way would be to make shearing a demonstration sport at a Commonwealth Games, if not the Olympics itself."
Ms Maxwell said competitive shearers clip up to 700 sheep over an eight-hour period - a feat that has been likened to running two marathons back-to-back.
"I can also testify to the physical effort shearing takes... (Top shearers) are athletes who take it to another level," she said.
The New Zealand's government's elite sports funding body SPARC already recognises shearing as a sport, providing it with grants to help run competitions.
New Zealand has a human population of about 4.4 million which is outnumbered by a national sheep flock of around 40 million, according to Statistics New Zealand.