A senior member of the London Petanque Club has called on people in the capital to try the sport amid hopes it may become an Olympic discipline.
Mark Hadsell, 38, has been involved in the club — based in Cleaver Square near the Oval in Kennington — for several years. He called on Londoners to try the game, a form of boules where the goal is to throw steel balls as close as possible to a small wooden ball called a cochonnet (literally “piglet”), in a bid to increase participation.
The stay-at-home father, who lives in Greenwich, said he was particularly keen to find new talent due to rumours the sport could become an Olympic discipline at the 2024 games.
The game is popular in Paris, which is one of the cities bidding to host the Olympics. Mr Hadsell said it would make sense for the game to be introduced in 2024 if Paris hosted the event.
Speaking as his side won the annual Challenge Match against New York City Petanque Club, Mr Hadsell said: “We have run the Challenge Match competition for ten years as a gesture of good- will and a way to promote the sport. We are very keen to reach out to new members and to find the next generation of petanque talent.”
On the prospect of the game becoming an Olympic sport, he said: “That would be fantastic — but we would need to go on a big talent drive to have the best Team GB possible.”
Last year, Claude Azéma, president of the Confédération Mondiale des Sports de Boules, confirmed his organisation was leading a bid to have petanque included in the Olympics in time for 2024.
He told the Guardian: “We are reasonably optimistic. For a new sport to be included, another one either has to go or the number of teams taking part in an existing sport has to be reduced.
“It’s not about excluding any sports, it’s about being inclusive. We just want some, like masculine football that has a World Cup, to field fewer teams and make room for us.”
Read More
Paris last hosted the Summer Olympics in 1924, and has since made three unsuccessful bids in 1992, 2008 and 2012. Bid proposers are pledging €35 million to build sports venues around the city. It faces stiff competition from Rome, Italy, Budapest, Hungary, and Los Angeles. The winning host country will be announced in September.
The petanque group meet and play every Wednesday evening during the summer and on the first Saturday of every month in winter.
