19 Nov 2020

$2 million upgrade for Cricket World Cup facilities

1:29 pm on 19 November 2020

Two million dollars will be spent on upgrading player facilities at the five venues for the 2022 Women's Cricket World Cup in New Zealand.

The upgrades focus on redevelopment of player facilities, including toilets, to make them gender neutral.

Women's toilets.
Practice Day. Aussie V8 Supercars Round Two, Hamilton 400, Frankton, Hamilton. Friday, 17 April 2009. Photo: Dave Lintott/PHOTOSPORT

Photo: Photosport

"Facilities that are tailored for men are not always right for women, and part of this funding is about changing that, so we are good hosts for the world's best women's players in 2022," Grant Robertson said.

The Basin Reserve is the first of venues to be upgraded.

The other venues set for upgrade are Seddon Park, Hagley Oval, University Oval and the NZ Cricket High Performance Centre at Lincoln University.

"Gender-neutral facilities are lacking at all levels of the sector and this needs to change to encourage more women and girls to participate in sport.

The $2 million investment in Women's Cricket World Cup venue upgrades follows an initial $7.3 million allocation for World Cup accessible venues announced as part of the government's $265 million Sport Recovery Package.

That investment covered upgrades to facilities at the match venues and training grounds for Rugby World Cup 2021, as well as the scoping of upgrades for Cricket World Cup and 2023 Women's Football World Cups.