The Cost of Becoming an Olympic Swimmer for Team USA | WSJ
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- čas přidán 29. 07. 2021
- Becoming an Olympic swimmer is an aspiration for thousands of young athletes in the U.S. But it comes at a heavy cost. Club dues alone can set swimmers back thousands of dollars each year. Here’s a breakdown of what it can cost to become an Olympic swimmer.
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As a former competitive swimmer, the financial costs are a drop in the bucket compared to the mental grind.
Nah being rich does have its advantages. Wealthy public schools have Olympic pools and since most kids end up participating in academic sponsored sports.Therefore most y’all swimmers are some rich folks
Makes sense since a lot of the best world class athletes come from wealthy or high middle class families. It costs a lot of money to be good at sports.
Except athletics
@@user-vy3dg7uh4e and football
@@mikaelzurich6166 actually football is a different story. If you are referring to the African players in Europe, they are recruited by people from clubs all across Europe based on merit
depends on the sport
Not really Fr
Im a college swimmer and these numbers are really exaggerated. Mostly because at the beginning you don’t spend anything besides club fees and then find out if you have potential to get to the next level. I didnt buy a tech suit until I was probably 4-5 years into the sport and nobody starts at nations capital or anything like that usually at an extremely low cost club / ymca and if you have potential and excel at it you may move to a better one that will cost maybe $1-2k a year. Plus if you are at the point that you need more than 1-2 tech suits per year you definitely have it paid for (either by college, sponsor, team etc.) Most swimmers with great potential dont use private lessons because they will be at a club with a coach they trust for all of that, so its not really an add-on cost. Last, goggles and caps are extremely inexpensive maximum $150 per year unless again, you can have them paid for by someone else in which case you would probably just get new everything for every meet. Its a snowball effect really, once you get truly great and show a lot of potential the resources will find their way to you not vice versa. Travel is also negligible because especially when youre younger most meets are very local and within dricing distance. Maybe one travel meet per year is really needed if its a qualification meet - which you would first need to qualify for at a local meet (sectionals, junior nationals would be examples of qualifying meets). Not affording a 2nd or 3rd tech suit or private trainer or the best club in the country is not a valid reason for people not succeeding at the sport. Given the median income in america it is extremely accessible and videos like this are only tarnishing the hard work the top swimmers put into it, they arent just great because they have money.
Well, there are those people that overpay because they don't know what they are doing and just trusting the greedy skills coaches. I agree with what you are saying and hope my kid can pursue swimming but needing constant skills training and paying tons of fees doesn't make sense unless that is the only way to get your foot in the door to a meet/qualifying tournament. If my kid does other physical activities and swims a few times a week, if taught properly, shouldn't forget how to swim properly. Wonder how qualifying for another country but swimming in the US will work out... hmm.
I'm a parent of two age group swimmers. One is a national top 50 rank in multiple events and the other is probably good enough to eventually swim in college if desired. I estimate the total cost at about $7000 per year for both put together. That is 11 months of training 5-6x/week, about 10 meets per year, and travel costs. One of my kids has a tech suit that cost about $180 and has used it for 2 years. The other has a tech suit that was given to him by a teammate who outgrew it. It cost $0.
I'm a former USA swim coach and I agree with everything here. My team had a few Olympic trial qualifiers but they didn't start out that way. They had no crazy tech suits until they started doing very well, and they ended up on scholarships for college swimming and so had most of there school paid for. Btw our fees were about 2,000 for the year.
I feel like most of the parents that spent the money on our team, as well as gym memberships and special equipment and the like did it in hopes of their kids getting a college scholarship. They see it as an investment.
As a swimmer, though not in the US this is way overpriced, once you are good enough and competing at a high level you usually get sponsored. Once at college equipment is usually paid for anyway...
@@mdstate829 Speedo, TYR, other companies, etc. Similar to how like basketball players may get sponsored by Nike
❌Incompetent Biden and Democrats now have the US INFLATION THE HIGHEST IN 30 YEARS. According to data released by the US Department of Commerce, the Personal Consumption Expenditures Price Index rose 4% between June 2020 and June 2021. If you factor out our food and energy costs, the metric rose by 3.5%, reaching the highest peak since July 1991. Wages are also increasing, but not as quickly as inflation, resulting in “real average hourly earning” declining by 1.7% over the past year. Vote 🗳 the Democrats out in 2022. 👎🏻🤮
@@drstone1167 you factored out the pandemic
@@santiagorf77 Sorry dude, Mr Stone stroked out after writing this all over the internet, so he won't get back to you.
They can't be sponsoring everyone.
It’s not just a monetary value, you can lose your social life, friends and in some cases your mental health
For you to be great there are sacrifices that are needed to be made
That’s why everyone doesn’t do it.
So basically Becoming an Olympian isn’t easily accessible to lower income competitors.
Got it.
Being an Olympic athlete in general is almost impossible for anyone that grew up in low income households. Very few sports see a large economic diversity at its highest levels.
@@Dodbanna that’s one of the reasons football is the best sport in the world. Maybe not in the USA but in the rest of the world it’s accessible for anyone from any economic background. Lots of the worlds top players come from poverty/low income families.
The nice thing is that once good enough, coaches will often support you with equipment, rides, fees, etc. I was a swimmer, not too wealthy, and suits are 300 bucks a pop and only 3 time a use. Luckily, my coach gave me suits and cut some fees so I can compete
It’s an overarching statement though. For example, track and field, soccer don’t cost much. And that video is wrong. Nobody needs swim lesson for the whole year. You can learn all four strokes in under 2 weeks. The rest of the training and improvement is all self-practice. Tech suit lasting only 4 times is also wrong. I don’t know what brand he is talking about, but each swim suits last about good 2 years depending on the use and care. Swimmers don’t wear tech suits every day in the pool. It’s usually worn during competition only. So, the statements made is the video are over statements. But I am not saying that it’s cheap either. As a sailor and a swimmer myself, I know how much our family has to spend on the costs.
@@Dodbanna true but nthing impossible
Any of these sports start as a hobby until they realize they have good potential. For swimming, you need the time and a facility to do this hobby which not everyone has access to. Once this and any hobby turns to a professional/olympian training , it will cost big bucks $$$$. This funnels only to the middle/upper class whose parents can afford this, I cannot imagine an olympic medalist with a full-time job and also an intense training every day.
Bro Olympian training is paid for by places, I’d you are that good, people want you instead of you wanting people
that's very true, however exceptions always exist, just look at Anna Kiesenhofer
@@zachsuarez1830 it's not always happening in US,and this includes medal Winners,they still struggle financially sometimes
This is just excuse mentality. Why don’t you watch the video titled “how fast can a former homeless swim 50 freestyle?” It’s literally the story of Olympic champion Anthony Ervin. There’s always a guy like you somewhere who’s real good at speaking half truths with no substance.
The financial cost is really trivial compare to the mental stress and physical stress over Olympians. What they do are honestly amazing and hard
It's not trivial. 25-40,000 dollars per year means that only high-income families can afford to pay the training for their children.
trivial? this is privilege talk
@@manut975 it isnt 25-40k pa if you get a sponsor
SWIMMING IS NOT FOR POOR FAMILIES IN THE UNITED STATES.
But technically for everyone in egypt
@@yusuforief8387 really? how come?
@@summerfirebon2362 a club membership is about 30 bucks a year if we convert from EGP to USD
and the club pays for all the championships and there are places funded by the government where you can swim for free
The only thing you pay for is the gear, and we use the tech suits for more than a year so not a concern
there are other expensive sports than this
@@blackcat-mp7kh equestrian is more expensive
“Sacrifice is never easy or it is no true sacrifice.”
This is so true me and my brother have recently joined a swimming club and it cost a lot for my parents. I only hope we can give back what they put in.
U missed the important expense i.e whenever they get injured or something happens to them while training the hospitals slams that big chunk of bill on them☹️
Yyyyuuppp
Dont think so, once in a competitive level they are covered
Thanks for such knowledgeable video.
Good analysis, WSJ!
With 2022 Winter Olympics approaching, I'd hope to see you put out same kind of reporting on figure skating which is even more excluding than swimming. In fact why not make a deep dive on what sports are only for families with certain incomes, meaning out of reach for talented chikdren from financially challenged families.
As a high school wrestling coach of going on 18 years I can tell you wrestling, swimming, etc... any of these sports are accessible to anyone but for those looking to go D1 for starters or have a crack at making the national team some day it does become not just a cost commitment but also very much a time and family commitment. The kid and family have to first understand and then agree that what it's going to take is a full on commitment to chasing the dream. You may have to give up going to this teenage social event or that school event in order to prep and train for whatever it is your doing that weekend athletically. And to be clear there is a HUGE different between being collegiate D1 and making the national team. Cause I'm sure some on here might reply with "well my buddy went to homecoming and prom and went D1". Yea but your buddy probably isn't Kyle Dake or Kyle Snyder or Katie Ledecky, etc..... Snyder even opted out of his senior year of high school wrestling to go train at the USA Wrestling training center as a 17 year old to prepare for wrestling at Ohio State and ultimately Team USA. The point is and I tell kids and parents this all the time, anyone can achieve whatever it is they wanna do, not all are willing to give up certain things to get there. How many kids and parents are willing to push the start time of opening gifts on Christmas day in order to go lift weights or run for a couple hours first? Watch not the movie Foxcatcher but the documentary about Dave / Mark Schultz and John DuPont. The Schultz's and other Olympic wrestlers back then had to basically go into poverty in order to train for worlds and the Olympics.
It's pretty much the opposite in India(all sports). Most of our Olympians are from rural areas that don't even have access to electricity, water and fuel and aren't even connected well either by roads or railways. The fact that some of our athletes succeed despite these obstacles is a true testament to their determination
The numbers they used, while they could be true, are pretty exaggerated from most swimmers. I was a D1 swimmer from a low income home and my club dues were around $600/yr, tech suits were $500/yr, other equipment was maybe $75/yr, and I mostly competed in local meets so I really only had to pay for lodging maybe once a year.
Did you compete in the Olympics?
@@saynotop2w Olympic athletes don't pay for they equipment. The hardest moment of a sport Carrier is when you live like a pro, train like a pro, buu equipment like a pro but you are not a pro yet. So you still have to play for everything.
Please consider doing one for as many sports as possible please. The Kids and Parents need to understand the complexity of sports.
We have committed to investing in our son's Baseball, training sessions can be around $15 - $30 per session. $600 team fee's. $75 - $100 ish per physicians appointment. The list goes on, but in total we budget about $6000 to $8000 per year.
Please do one for every sport you can, just like this. Great job
Lol the legs making the perfect bunny ears for Ashley.
Can you do a video explaining the costs for other Olympic sports?
Your Speedo budget would be mind boggling....
I loved this story. I started swimming competitively at the age of 5, completed the 1st -3rd kids ocean triathlon at dockweiler state beach starting age 6, participated in Stanford Swim camp around age 8 or so.... division 1 eligible in swimming and basketball when I entered university at age 16. Decided I was burnt out with everything and now I’m just happy that my 3.5 year old is taking to swimming already. I never thought I’d be a parent who’d be like “yes, do my Sport”, and I’m still not... but, it really does feel special to see your kid excelling in something that brought you so much joy for over 15 years. I will always be grateful for my journey as a swimmer and all the water sports I did (surf camps, sailing camps, etc). I am also looking at this video and seeing folks breathe after every 1 butterfly stroke. And I’m like, “when I was 12 I already perfected 4-5 butterfly strokes without breathing and even then, I would turn my head to the side like I did in freestyle, so as to keep my head closer to the water”. I guess that is why I broke so many records individually and on relays with my techniques. 😆 anyway I digress... go, swimmers, go!
it seems the message some people (especially foreigners on the internet) get from these kinds of videos is that
every American most spend that much money to become an olympic swimmer for team USA.
that every American pays or owes hundred of thousands of dollars in hospital bills and / or tuition.
that every American pays tens of thousands for childbirth,
and on and on and on.
partly because people who make these kinds of videos usually focus on the worst case scenario and even exaggerate some times. they don't bother to explain the system or the fact that most people don't pay these high sums or that most people simply make better choices and do very well in the system.
This is the most incorrect video. These costs are highly inflated. As a competitive swimmer for a decade and college athlete, these cost are no where near claimed. Suits and equipment are at most $500 a year, as entry level swimmers do not wear the highest end equipment and once a swimmer reaches the college level, suits are heavily subsidized. Usually 75%+ of costs. Bad information, do your research. Disappointed as this will scare people away from this amazing sport.
Definitely for rich kids. It doesn’t matter how talented or how hard he/she have worked, without that financial backing you’re not gonna get to anywhere
It’s expensive yes but it’s not just for rich kids. If you’ve ever been part of a swim team you would see all kids of different backgrounds
@@iluvzurara2 In the beginning stage it doesn’t take a lot of money but once you qualify for the states we start traveling starting paying the airfare and hotels then that’s gonna cost you a lot more.
@@iluvzurara2 in order to be part of the Olympic team you have to compete in the highest level meaning that more likely you will be traveling internationally competing many years in order to get the ranking that you need to be part of a national team.
@@101kevinh national and college teams pay for travel and equipment, in middle school youre not good enough to travel, you only have big expenses in high school and if youre creative and motiavated enough you can get it all covered
@@carlnickson7353 I do believe that you are definitely more creative than most. Most schools doesn’t even have Olympic related sports, which you have to go to local clubs and pay monthly fees and private coaching( if you want to really improve and get any good) all I’m saying behind that shining gold metal there is A tremendous amount of price to pay. Price as $$$$ lots of it. Just think about how much money do you need to get involved in Equestrian 🐴. How much to own a horse these days?
Those swimming suits must have been stitch with a lot of miniature propellers !!!
interesting! given how well US performs in Olympics, I assumed there is a lot of government funding involved to train people across various sports.
Determination is very important
Big whoop. Even any hobby costs a lot if you really want to be a pro or just love your hobby. Look at what people who own horses for recreation pay.
Exactly. I don't want my tax dollars going to people swimming or doing any sport. They do nothing for me.
@@spedkaone right and an imperial military and corporate bailouts are somehow better
@@shayan_idk Did I say that? Are there absolutely no better things to spend money on that a guy who chose to hit a ball for a living?
Nice video.
Most sports are for wealthy or high middle class people. The ones who has to study and have a job to be able to live, cant aspire to be a high level athlete.
What club program coat $5,000 a year 🥴 mine is just $720. There are many to choose from in all areas don't just settle for the most expensive
This expenses list lookin like the first one I ever made for myself as a young adult
The membership in my club is around 200 per year and I live 15 min away from Paris … this is nuts!!!
Track and field is in an identical situation, with the exception that going pro gives you an opportunity to earn prize money and appearance fees
Most of these expenses are for the 1% of athletes. If you train swimming even up to college it is not that expensive. Swim lessons through cities are cheap and many cities have clubs as well that are relatively cheap for year round swim. High school swim is pretty much free as well. Most people only use things like tech suits for collegiate level. Maybe state champs for high school, but even then only people with money use them.
The best swimmers come out of year-round clubs. High school swimming is seasonal
We're talking about people going to the Olympics. The people taking cheap lessons and swimming only in high schools will most likely not be an elite swimmer
Im dirt poor and have been swimming 6 years minus the time from covid, and affording the tech suits and gym membership and meet costs have all been doable. The only real barrier to improvement has been to have the disciplin to do the things i know will improve me. Drills, yoga, bike riding, weightlifting. Theres always highly skilled people to get advice from .
Two biggest costs= Food and Time
I think only the Top 50 swimmers in the world can live comfortably , after you reached certain level you attract sponsors who pay you to compete , you can charge appearance fees and get free flights, hotel stays and so on
We need more gladiator sports!
So basically, to be an Olympian, your parents must be rich?!
No, but it helps. Duh.
@@JerkingLegacy Who pays for the club dues if the parents can't?
@@sasshole8121 Loans probably
@@sasshole8121 You’d have to find sponsors or swim through a school. You, however, said Olympians. Not all sports require something as huge as an investment as a pool
Like with anything, the best training and equipment, require money. It’s not free, why should it.
No one:
Thanos: EVERYTHING.
it only pays for 5 star athletes living today and everybody else gets existential glory
huh? why does the tech suit wear out that quickly if its so expensive?
If everyone had unlimited money, most of the current Olympians would still be Olympians because it’s the mental aspect that has the most impact
And here I was day dreaming I could put my son into an Olympic swimming program.
Plus eating 10,000 calories of food during every swim. Good lord, imagine the food costs.
This video is incredibly misleading in a number of ways.
Club dues are double counted in the "Training" section and "Membership" section. And cherry pick those from NCAP? Why you paying club dues if you're going to just have a private coach instead? Then we are going to pretend that Olympic hopefuls are going to Swim Labs for private lessons? Get out of here.
And the video didn't even talk about the mental/social/developmental aspect of being an Olympic swimmer (or any sport really).
5,000$ a year for club fees? I must be at some super cheap poor swim team, for me it’s ab 1,200$ a year for a coach that has trained jr National champions.
Go America Go 🇺🇲
I play college water polo. I take it seriously, but my first and most important concern is: am I having FUN? If the answer is ever no, then I would stop. I play because I love the sport. I don't care about medals or fame, and I'm not holding my breath for any of that.
In india, of you are talented and got selected, Indian govt will pay for everything things including dress, food, travel, stay, coaching, training and etc all for free.
I mean, People need to have the time and money to get to that talent. India’s poor showing at the olympics demonstrates that something is not working at the grassroot level, and the barrier of entry is probably way higher for the avg Indian
Edit: And I’m aware that cricket is not in the olympics, but there is definitely a barrier of entry issue for common sports like swimming, running, etc. India wouldn’t need a policy like that if it wasn’t so hard for Indians to even get into sports like swimming
LOL another indian using every opportunity to "show off" their country, when in fact Michael Phelps alone won more than 2 times the gold medals than India has ever won in their entire Olympic history.
I think I'm crazy enough to found this video
Need video about individual athlete that can make it in olympic with bare minimum support and still got the medal.
Austria, Anna Kiesenhofer road cycling won gold, but not sure what kind of support she got.
@@Anita-tm3bi yes, but she was a professional athlete in team Lotto Soudal for a couple of years, spent her youth in the lower categories of a pro team and in the end knew how to train and perform at a pro level
I swim in the bath........very hard to to a flip turn when you're 6'2".
To many families, they train their kids in a sport is never expected to be an Olympic athletes. Use the number in the video, the cost to train a kid before the college is about ~40K. If the kids can make a college with full scholarship, the training is probably worth it.
In the video, they talk about 25-40,000 dollars per year. By the time they reach college, they may have paid the same as three or four Ivy League degrees.
@@manut975 2:58 look it up before comments.
@@chelsea7xhf The amount mentioned at 2:58 is for "club dues alone". At 3:43 they mention the total cost at 25-40,000 dollars per year.
@@manut975 I see, thanks. But I assume, no one spend 25K to train a 10 years old. Maybe age between 15-18 that push to college age, then you will need a private coach to get full college scholarship.
I think we need to start discussing a national program that supports world-class athletes... We are the best country in the world and Olympic is a good event to project that symbol
Sounds like socialism... The U.S. is best at a lot of things precisely because we don't try to pick winners and throw money at them.
Nah because then blacks would dominate every sport and the right wingers would storm the Olympics lol
Who buys 3-4 suits a year lol?
Maybe in the US it is different but where I'm from a suit should last at least a year and a half/two years.
Those special tech suits, are extremely tight and made of water resistant and buoyant materials. After 3-4 uses, it losses its tightness and you won’t get an optimal performance. Practice suits for swimming usually last 1-2 years
@@morpheus1717 Idk, Im a pretty serious swimmer and I had mine for like two years. I don't know anybody who changes it willingly more than once a year
Same I’ve used 1 $200 suit for the last 2 years and it’s been just fine. This video has exaggerated so much
For pro swimmers they don’t typically use them for more than 3 occasions. For young club swimmers you’ll see that they use them more often because not having them as tight as they originally were doesn’t make much of a difference and it’s also cheaper to just keep using it
It is so different in the US to in the UK
Actual cost of training $50k+
Team USA payout per gold Medal for 2020/21 summer Olympics:
$37,500
I have realized that all sports are just businesses and financial traps for most families hoping their kids could eventually be the top ones. Look at the money, time and sacrifice that you have to put in with time, I don't think it is worthy at all. For me, I just want my kids to build up both physical and mental strengths through training and competitions at local clubs and that's it - going pro will be a bad option.
This feels like a very American issue. Everything seems to be about money in the US. I mean I did sport all my life. Traveled a lot and stayed in hotels. But we got government grants and the team payed most of the expenses. So again this seems (like always when it comes to inequality) to be a very American problem.
What country are you from
Except for the fact that USA wins the most medals in every Olympics.
Depends on how much your country wants to back you too.
@@neeljavia2965 we’ll see how that goes this year . Gonna get owned by your own enemy China 🤣🤣. At least that’s how it looks so far
@@sandeepgill9628 Let's see.
I’m so thankful to have parents who are willing to put about £6000+ a year for me to swim and pursue my dreams ❤️
WSJ I don’t think you should generalize every sport
The cost is Hundreds of thousands to millions for many. The % of people who go to the Olympics is small. The percent that make any money is very very small.
The math is using the largest possible prices for everything. You can be a good swimmer without those things and if you really are good enough sponsors will pay for the rest of it
Private lessons at 349 dollars a month!?? For that price you'll get A YEAR of private swimming lessons in my country (Portugal).
It all depends where you get your lessons it’s not the same everywhere
@@newo7692 Sorry - no it doesn't. In my country NO ONE is going to ask you for 349 dollars for private lessons (unless you ask for 30 days/4 hours a day worth of lessons...!) But then, in my country you give birth to a baby in a hospital and pay ZERO for the surgery AND your stay...
@@mancebo7 my mistake I meant it’s not 349 dollars everywhere in the US
@@newo7692 I see. Take care!
Wow just think...years of personal and financial investment for the possibility of landing a Wheaties commercial deal.
This is what Olympians train for.
Now do track and field… join your high school team: $0
Except that it doesn't work that way in many countries. You have to pay to join an athletic club or a swimming club or a golf club or a football club and it's like this in many countries, so yes athletes sacrifice alot of time, energy and money. If swimming was cheaper in the US, I guess the team would look like your athletics team.
Nah there's very little difference. Instead of buying swimsuits you're buying spikes. If you're shooting for the highest elite levels you'll be joining some sort of club or specialized gym where you can train year-round, even if you also participate on your high school team. Then you'll be footing the training and travel costs. Same story...
@@beyourself2444 youre wrong. It wouldn't look like the track team. Black women specifically are very particular about their hair. Black men body can also be a challenge since they are naturally bulky and not lean.
@Nathan Bickell did you not read the video title? “The cost of becoming an OLYMPIC swimmer” not high school
Michael Andrew trains by him self using usrpt
You guys missed the most important and possibly second largest cost…. Food.
"Relatively accessible sport like swimming" Bro do they know what the race breakdown is for swimming in the US?
600 dollars for a swimsuit? How about anywhere between 5k to 200k for a piano.
You can rent a piano for much cheaper to see if it's a good fit, or buy a used instrument - sometimes you can even find neighbors who are willing to give them to you for free.
Wow that's relevant
China and Russia: the new global leaders!
Brits learn to swim from 6-12years old and it costs between £60-80 per month for a swimming membership... much cheaper for children.
It is but at what cost. I was part of a smaller team for most of my swimming career. Only once I got older and knew other coaches I found out about bigger championship swim meets that I had qualified for but had not been informed about and it was during a period when I was unmotivated. If I had potentially known it could have driven me more. I ended up going to a different team that was probably 4 times the price and did improve tremendously. Also 18 and up there is something called masters swimming that is definitely a lot cheaper. But has easier times but championships all over the world.
govt should run all those program and fund it , so if their students are successful they will get cut for all free stuff they've been given to athletes
What if some one just trained on their own really hard and met time requirements for an event. Would they be able to compete with the 20$ goggle 10$ cap and 30$ suit? Or is there anti broke boi rules
They could compete without the cap and goggles if they wanted too
It's difficult to train on one's own without a coach. Jason Lezak trained himself at one point, but he was a seasoned swimmer (and even then his peers didn't think it was a good idea).
For any non swimmers, this is overblown. You only need one 250 dollar tech suit a year (for men), a decent USA club will charge 4000 a year, and travel fees are also a few thousand dollars. Private coach? Nutritionist? Tf?
Once you get past college, I wouldn't know
I don't know anybody that spends that much on tech suits. And nobody buys more than 1 pair of goggles per year.
if you don't have enough money, you need to be 'THAT GOOD', and get discovered by talent scout. is there another way? idk
Tech suits are free for most good swimmers
This is not surprising. Elite athletes use the collegiate system which covers the cost for 4 years or more, but then need sponsorships or an upper -middle to affluent family to afford all those costs. I laugh at the deceptive comments calling this "a hobby". Ha! a hobby is buying some inexpensive stuff at a craft store, and taking up painting, pottery or a purchase at the garden center and getting your green thumb on in the garden. The USA swimming world doesn't want you to know how expensive and exclusive it is. No white kid from some Appalachian "hollow" or inner city person of color doing this sport. The only surprising thing here is that a Murdoch owned WSJ threw a spotlight on it.
Lol u talking about USA we in civilized world (Poland) have teams at any lvl for free or very low price
Yeah but all your good swimmers end up training in the US or some even in Russia
Wednesday Twenty-First of December Two Thousand And Twenty-Two.
18.52pm.
Dear Sir/Madam. Good-evening. How are you? I hope you are well.
Thank you, for the video.
Francesca Kray.
not even sure why they started the video with shots of bball players, hockey players that have their respective pro teams to return to.. Atleast preface that not all sports are equal... Also should note that top swimmers in the collegiate level can get additional revenue now.. by taking on sponsorships.. they didn't do their own due dilligence for this video.. that is a new rule as of this summer..
You forgot about the cost it is to maintain proper eating
So basically becoming an olympian or star athlete you need to come from a well to do family. People in the comments can argue all they want about how even if your poor you can find a cheap pool to practice but for limited time let me tell you if you need to practice having a private place you can practice all day and have a coach can lead you to have a successful swim career.
That is incorrect
No, but you have to be at least middle class (for swimming) to at least pay dues
God given talent doesn't require all this
You forgot to mention the fact that college gets payed for by scholarships if you’re good enough, which basically negates all the costs that you mentioned from pre-collegiate competition.
It might but how many students does college enroll in swimming scholarship. Bet it doesn't cover everyone from the club's
Competing is an expensive hobby ... that’s unless you always win.
Actually, it’s the same with vanity: You have to spend a lot of hard earned money in order to have the nicest cloths, newest car and a bigger TV than your neighbors’.
So ask yourself who’s the fool? 😉
Not at all comparable
It is a business - make sure you get more money back than you invest, include the time that your whole family invests for you. Sport is more like job, work or your career, treat it the same as you do for every other money making scheme.
Nope.
Then you will never succeed.
4 racing suits a year??? 0.o
THEY ARE HIGH MIDDLE CLASS. THEY CAN AFFORD IT.
Who’s that Wheaties person and does that cereal taste good?
California gubernatorial candidate Caitlyn Jenner.
They only talk about America 🇺🇸
Uhhh micheal andrew did not skip collge to goto the olympics, hes gone anyways and the reason he skipped NCAAs is because he WENT PRO AT 14 and became the yongest pro ever thus he is disqualified from amateur comps what a load of misinformation in this, why dont you have a story on all the great inner citie swim teams there are?!? Read the swim bible on coaching inner cities teams, there have been books and many articles on this already.
Y'all focus too much on the cost of equipment, etc. What truly makes any competitive sport viable only for the financially well-off is nutrition: a malnourished child cannot hope to compete against one with a rich (no pun) diet, good sleep, low stress, etc.
Hold on was that bruce jenner @ 0:21 !?
Yes......i miss that guy
YES HE IS. WHEN HE WAS A MACHO ALPHA.
So micheal Phelps has rich parents, got it
Very misinformed…..Michael Phelps was not rich when he was little…he mentioned only eating peanut butter sandwiches as a kid….do your research smh
Both of Phelps' sisters were swimmers - that's how he started at a swim club (North Baltimore Aquatic Club). He already held records by age 10 and was noticed by Bowman, his coach. I don't know the details, but most likely the club supported his training in his earlier years. Remember, he was at the Sydney Olympics at age 15. He most likely had sponsors in the years leading up to it.
You know what else cost a lot? Any other valuable profession.
You know atheletes only have about 12 years competing. Out of those, probably only around 5 years of prime.
After that they are thrown back into society where they find any job they are hired.
@@blipblop92 So? It's a career choice. There is nothing noble about being an athlete. If they want job security, sports is not it.
So unless you come from a family of wealth. Your chances of being an Olympic swimmer are vary low.
Very*
@@JerkingLegacy Bro the Grammar detective
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