It isn’t always clear what connection we have with the elite athletes in our culture, except as lofty examples and sources of entertainment.

If you live in Bath, and I assume this must be true of some other cities with significantly funded sports facilities, your child can get access to the best coaching money can buy. I learned the other day that the swimmer who coaches my seven-year-old’s beginner’s class at the Sports Training Village came ninth in the 2004 Athens Olympic final. £4 per lesson, and no waiting list. How is that possible?

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