Beijing Olympics 2008

[xoxoxoBruce]

Of course, if you can. Don't any Olympic athletes come from poor folk, or does the expense for the years of training rule them out?

[Griff]

You've got to figure that parents who were able to pay for and drive to the pool, gym etc... will be there. Some parents will take on debt. I assume corporate sponsors will bring parents of high profile athletes. Some track and field folks get paid enough to bring their parents... I guess there are a lot of different circumstances, but I'd guess lower middle-class folks would take the financial hit for something this big.

[Aliantha]

Originally Posted by xoxoxoBruce

Of course, if you can. Don't any Olympic athletes come from poor folk, or does the expense for the years of training rule them out?

I think that's a good question. It seems to me that a lot of the elite australian athletes come from well to do if not downright wealthy families in the main part. I think there are probably a lot of hidden talents throughout the world who just never find out how great they are because they never have the opportunity to really hone their skills because the families either can't afford it (and to some families, club fees are too much) or just aren't motivated enough to get out of bed at the crack of dawn with their kids every day and cart them off to whatever venue they train at. Again, this is also a financial burden when you consider transport costs and other sundries associated with just day to day training.