Athletes from Australia and the rest of Oceania have been invited to compete at the 2022 Asian Games, Australian Olympic chief John Coates said today.
The OCA's invite to the Games in China's Hangzhou is for selected sports only to enable regional athletes to qualify for the 2024 Paris Olympics through Asian competition, Coates said.
Oceania -- Australia, New Zealand and a swathe of Pacific islands -- has not taken part in the regional Olympics before, but sporting ties with Asia have been growing.
Australia has been a member of the Asian Football Confederation since 2006, and Oceania nations are currently competing at the Asian Indoor Games and Martial Arts Games in Turkmenistan.
Coates, who is also a member of the Association of Oceania NOCs, said the decision on Hangzhou -- the next but one Asian Games, after Indonesia hosts the tournament in 2018 -- was made by OCA President Sheikh Ahmad al Fahad al Sabah.
Share
