What price success? How the Australian swim squad at the Rio Olympics is funded by us

AUSTRALIAN taxpayers have handed over an incredible war chest of riches to our swimmers in Rio. The cost of a gold medal will shock you.

Our leading swimmers are taking part in a pre-Games camp in Alabama USA. Photo by Delly Carr.

IT HAS cost the Australian taxpayer $38 million to get our swimmers to Rio. With estimates the team could win eight gold medals, that works out to $4.75 million each.

Of course, those who believe that winning silver or bronze is just as worthy as winning gold would be offended by such an equation.

So how about this: leading international sport analysis firm Gracenote predicts Australian swimmers will also win three silver and six bronze, making a total haul of 17 medals at the pool. Divide that into $38 million and it comes out to a far more reasonable $2.2 million per medal, regardless of colour.

Or, even better for the “every swimmer who makes the team is a winner” theorists, by dividing the total amount spent by the number of swimmers in the Olympic squad — 37 — it breaks down to just over $1.02 million per athlete.

Not that it works that way, says Simon Hollingsworth, chief executive of the Australian Sports Commission, the government body that distributes the money to Swimming Australia.

“The Australian public is right to ask how their money is being spent and what they are getting back for their investment, but to look at it in terms solely of Olympic medals in Rio is a very simplistic approach,” he said.

“The $38 million has been spent over a four-year period between Olympics but the results will be felt way beyond Rio, and far beyond the individual athletes. We have calculated that every dollar spent on the elite program generates four to five dollars cascading down to the sport generally.”

The $38 million has been spent on three areas: direct funding to the athletes; funding of the athletes’ general support network, such as coaches and specialist support staff; and innovation grants to enable technical support such as hi-tech performance testing and specialised training camps.

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Direct funding of just over $3 million has gone to a total of 94 swimmers considered potential medal winners over the four years. Grants are awarded for a six-month period, meaning there were never as many as 94 at any one time.

The maximum a swimmer can receive in one year is $35,000, meaning a total of $140,000 between Olympics, although the grants are means tested so, say, a swimmer receiving commercial sponsorship or living at home, will receive less than a lower profile swimmer who has moved interstate to train with a specific coach.

“Basically we provide the means for the athletes to be athletes,” Hollingsworth said. “We help them pay for pool time, or pay their rent. It is often hard for them, and it is not a lot of money in the big picture.

“One of the things we are proud of is that we have set ambitious targets and we are meeting them. This isn’t just about the Olympics. We have already had very good results at the Commonwealth Games and World Championships.

“We are confident that when Rio is completed the public will feel that their money has been well spent.”

Originally published as What price success? How the Australian swim squad at the Rio Olympics is funded by us