Australia consider emulating British funding system after Olympic beating
The Australian government has devised a plan to beat Great Britain at their home Olympics in 2012 – emulate its funding system.
Australia finished behind Britain in the medals table for the first time in 20 years at the Beijing Games, winning 46 medals, including 14 golds, compared to Britain’s record haul of 47 medals with 19 golds.
Team GB’s best Olympic performance in 100 years was attributed to funding made available through the National Lottery, and now the Australians are looking into employing the same system.
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said: “We want to have another look at [lottery funding], it’s a positive, constructive idea, let’s see if it works.”
But despite it’s clear success, Great Britain’s system does not impress the French, who believe the money generated by lottery funding has been distributed to only a handful of sports, rather than across the board.
France could only finish tenth in the medals table with just seven gold medals, but Secretary of State Bernard Laporte, the former French rugby union coach, stands by the nation’s funding methods.
“We aren’t just going to concentrate our means on four or five sports to bring home the medals, like the British have done,” he said.