Nocsa could drink from Australia's cup

Gary Player cracked a joke at the Nedbank Million Dollar golf tournament in December. While I was chatting to him he ordered some tea from one of the Sun City staff.

"Please bring me some tea," he said. "Oh, and just bring a pot and some saucers."

"Why no cups Mr Player?" asked the waiter.

"There's no point," quipped Gary, "The Australians have got all the cups."

Gary Player wasn't wrong. The Australian sports machine has certainly had an incredible run of successes recently. World champions at cricket, rugby and netball, Davis Cup champions, and their swimmers are breaking records as well. Every week we read of another Australian sports triumph. There is almost an air of predictability in any major sports event in which Australians participate. The pattern looks set to continue in this year's Olympic Games.

The Australians would be expected to do well in any Olympic Games, but when they are hosts we can expect something extra special.

From the moment they won the bid a few years ago, the Australians have been preparing for a successful 2000 Olympic Games.

I'll bet that on home turf, with massive doses of self-belief, and enthusiastic home support, they will rival the perennial Olympic powers in their medals tally. It will be no surprise if they win the most medals in the swimming pool and just watch them at men's and women's hockey. But, I also expect them to excel in events in which they are not normally considered major contenders.

The centre of any Olympic Games is the track and field competition. While the Australians have produced great track and field athletes in the past, this time expect them to really shine. By the end of September several Australian names will be as familiar to us as Herb Elliot, Betty Cuthbert, Raelene Boyle, Ralph Doubell and Ron Clarke.

There are several reasons for their predictable success and we could do well to learn from them if we are to improve on our tally of five medals (three gold, one silver and one bronze) at the Atlanta Olympics.

The first is the amazing support athletes from every sport code are given by the Australian government and private sector for their Sports Foundation. Young talent is identified, supported, financed and coached until ready to perform successfully at the highest level. This support is the single most important factor in Australian success. Those who have the potential to perform well at the Olympics are informed of this, supported and then selected early enough to be able to prepare properly.

At this stage, barring injury or illness, virtually every Australian sports star with potential knows that he or she will be competing in Sydney in September. The various sports bodies, the sponsors and the general public are already rallying behind them, ensuring the supporting cheers are heard as one success follows another.

At the moment the much publicised war between National Olympic Committee of South Africa and Athletics South Africa must be most disconcerting for our athletes.

Whatever the issues, and I am certain most of us will never understand them, these need to be resolved in the greater interest of letting our athletes perform with our full backing.

Athletes need to be selected now (in fact, they should have been selected already). They need to be informed that, barring injury or illness, they will be travelling to Sydney. They need to be able to plan their training and competition in the secure knowledge that all is well.

There is always cause for concern when there is dissension in the ranks and particularly so when it is among the sports' governing bodies. It would be no surprise to learn that some sports sponsors are becoming concerned. The last thing our sport needs right now is to lose sponsors.

Obviously, there are quarrels and personality clashes in Australian sport, but we certainly don't get to hear about it, and in their quest for medals and more of Gary Player's cups, the Australians are brilliant at showing a united front.