Change the sporting rules

Imagine that there were no weight classes in boxing, weightlifting and wrestling. Who would compete? Certainly not the lighter athletes, no matter how good they may be. Not even the not-so-light. They would be events solely for heavyweights.

Unimaginable, you might say. Yet there are sporting events where that principle is not only imaginable but the rule, particularly in athletics (track and field). Take the high jump, for example. If you are not built like a beanpole, you are best advised to try something else, regardless of your talent and ability.

So here is how I would change the rules. Clear your own height and you get say ten points, with an additional point for every centimetre above that level and minus one for every centimetre below. The competitor with most points, wins.

Everyone would then be competing on equal terms. OK, if you are very heavily built you are still not likely to jump high, but there can hardly be any legislation for that, just as the very slightly built are not likely to make good shot putters or discus throwers. But those events could nevertheless be divided into weight classes, if not as many as in weightlifting, for instance.

Basketball is another sport dominated by players who tower over most of us. Why, in New Zealand, famed for its rugby team – the All Blacks, the national basketall team is known as the Tall Blacks. So what about all those who can't stretch up and dunk the ball in the basket? Yes, I know there may be one or two shorter players in a side, but a team entirely without its giants would stand little chance against the others, certainly at elite level. So I would have a seperate class for those below a certain height. And the same principle would apply to any other sport where height or weight give a decisive advantage.

Don't you agree?