6 Nov 2008

Push for netball in Olympics

5:42 pm on 6 November 2008

More than 600,000 people have backed a campaign to have netball included in the 2012 London Olympic Games.

Team Bath goalkeeper Eboni Beckford-Chambers, who has played three times for England, began her campaign on a social networking website. The 22-year-old has been backed by high-profile supporters who include British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Cherie Blair, wife of the previous prime minister.

The International Olympic Committee has approved netball as an Olympic sport, but there are no plans to include the game in the 2012 or 2016 Games.

The Olympic committee will meet in Denmark in October next year to discuss the issue.