UK SPORT yesterday confirmed they are to reconsider funding cuts which led to them being accused of a betrayal of Olympic legacy.
Chief executive Liz Nicholl said they are launching a public consultation to determine future policy. They will announce a decision on the future of their £100m annual investment in February.
This process could also have implications for funding of Scottish sport, sportscotland indicated.
When basketball funding was slashed, we were resoundingly critical of draconian UKS policy. It was one of six sports savaged early this year, with synchronised swimming, women's water polo, Paralympic fencing, goalball, and five-a-side football, while handball and volleyball lost all funding two years ago. They will all now hope consultation may restore funding.
Cuts were due to under-performance in London 2012, but it's hard to avoid the conclusion that awarding Olympic preparation money was mere window-dressing.
Basketball is Britain's biggest team sport for 14-16 year-olds. Cuts to its programme sit uneasily with increased support for successful Olympic disciplines like rowing, sailing, equestrianism and modern pentathlon. These are establishment sports, largely public school-based, and with comparatively small participation.
However, UKS argue that the policy reaped record Olympic medal hauls, it's inescapable that any sport development programme has to be structured. Transforming a mediocre discipline into a world-ranked one may take a generation.
UKS funding is absolutely result-oriented, but if there is any joined-up thinking, UKS should be obliged to acknowledge the impact of an elite shop-window on participation which can beneficially impact on health, education, social inclusion and crime statistics.
Funding cuts have contributed to GB men's failure to qualify for next year's EuroBasket Championships. Scotland's Olympian, Kieron Achara, said he and his team-mates had to live on £15 a day, sleep in beds far too short for them, and take flights at anti-social hours on budget airlines after late-night matches in order to economise.
Any change in UKS policy would need to be reflected in Scotland, where a review is ongoing after Glasgow 2014. Sportscotland's response to our enquiries yesterday was that they have: "regular discussions with UK Sport" and would be participating, "with their wider consultation regarding future investment into performance sport."
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