Olympic sports put on notice by ASC Olympic sports swimming, cycling, athletics, sailing, rowing, hockey and basketball have been warned they risk losing up to 20 per cent of their taxpayer funding if they do not meet new governance standards over the next 12 months. The sports were put on notice on Tuesday by the Australian Sports Commission (ASC) as it released new standards required from sports that receive government funding. ASC chairman John Wylie said recent sports scandals confirmed that many sports needed to raise standards significantly. Wylie said swimming, cycling, athletics, sailing, rowing, hockey and basketball had been identified as the first to face the new governance checks as they were the largest recipients of government funding and contributed most significantly to international success. "The ASC is ideally placed to drive improvement in governance standards in Australian sport because it can and will make this a requirement for the ASC's future sport funding grants," Wylie said. While good governance does not guarantee success, its absence almost certainly guarantees failure. The recent Smith Review into swimming and Wood Review into cycling both identified governance shortcomings as central reasons for failures in the competitive, business or ethical standards in those sports. "The ASC believes that the Australian public has the right to expect that sports receiving significant taxpayer funding will be well run," Wylie said. The ASC's increased focus on governance and accountability has two dimensions: A new set of mandatory governance principles for larger partner sports receiving more than $5 million per annum in ASC funding, with financial implications for non-compliance. Establishing a much stronger link between sports performance and their funding - with a continued emphasis on participation. Key reforms sought include: Improved organisation structures. Improved board election processes and gender balance. Zero tolerance for any lack of transparency by sports on how they spend money. Public company level requirements for sports financial reporting practices. Proper supervision by boards of sports science practices. The ASC said it would work closely with the sports named to help them achieve those principles. Wylie added the importance of all sports implementing sound governance and effective administration was a key feature of Australia's Winning Edge, a high performance strategy announced late last year, and the ASC remained committed to partnering with sports to improve on and off the field. National sporting organisations will also be able to compete for $5 million worth of new funding per year that is available to sports for talent identification, innovation and high performance leadership development.