Seismic sport: A case study of swimming, hockey and gymnastics in post-earthquake Christchurch, New Zealand

Abstract

Throughout 2010 and 2011, the city of Christchurch, New Zealand, suffered a series of devastating earthquakes that caused serious damage to the city. This study is one of the first to examine the effect the earthquakes have had on sport in Christchurch. Through a case study of three different sports: swimming, hockey and gymnastics, this study traces the way sports were affected by the earthquakes and their subsequent developments since the quakes. The study adopts an Actor Network Theory perspective, acknowledging the earthquakes as non-human actants that directly affected the workings of the city. It is found that within each sport, there are a variety of winners and losers but that all three suffer from intense frustration owing to the changing power relationships within sporting governance that make it difficult for sports to continue to progress.