BEIJING, Aug 24: Australia felt first hand the financial realities at the Beijing Olympics where they slipped to sixth on the medals tally from their heady highs at the Sydney and Athens Games.

The Australians’ 14 gold medals, garnered across seven sports, were three fewer than they achieved at Athens four years ago and their total 46-medal haul was lower than Sydney’s 58 and the 49 in Athens.

But the Aussies saw it all coming, even if all the medals won were more than they had expected.

The Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) downsized its Beijing projections to 44 medals and based its benchmark rankings from performances at international events and world championships over the past year.

AOC chief John Coates forecast a mighty battle with cashed-up Great Britain and Germany for a top-five spot putting Australia under pressure to hold on to its fourth placings at Sydney and Athens.

In the final wash-up, the AOC’s fears were realised as Great Britain, relishing its greatest gold medal haul in 100 years, powered to fourth spot and primed for an even bigger return at the 2012 London Games, while Germany took fifth.

Australia, a country of 21 million, place enormous importance on projecting its image to the world through its sporting endeavours, whether in cricket, rugby, tennis, golf and at the Olympics.

It’s estimated that each Australian Olympic gold medal in Beijing cost around A$16 million (US$14 million), but the AOC say it will press for even more funding for their athletes in preparation for the next London Games.

“There needs to be greater direct assistance to [Australia’s] athletes,” Coates said on Sunday’s final day of competition.

“There needs to be more funding for talent identification, for coaching, for the sports science and medical backup and for the administration.

“If we’re going to be putting a figure to government to enable us to stay in the top five in London then the government should be ensuring that the sports have got the appropriate management at the top to manage that money.”

Coates said the Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd agreed with the national accent on sporting excellence.

“We are on the same page as the federal government, the prime minister understands the importance of our Olympic team and other international teams to the reputation of Australia,” Coates said. “He’s able to reflect in the glory of it when he’s overseas.”

Once again Australia’s success in Beijing was built on its traditional strength of swimming.

Australian won six gold medals at the Water Cube, all by its champion women swimmers with Stephanie Rice snaring the medley double and her swim in the 4x200m freestyle, all in world record time. The men failed to win a gold medal for the first time since the 1976 Montreal Games.

Rice was honoured with carrying the Australian flag at the closing ceremony.

Other golds went to Scott Brennan and David Crawshay in the men’s double sculls, Duncan Free and Drew Ginn in the men’s rowing pair, triathlete Emma Snowsill, Nathan Wilmot and Malcolm Page in the men’s 470 sailing, Elise Rechichi and Tessa Parkinson in the women’s 470 sailing, pole vaulter Steve Hooker, kayaker Ken Wallace in the men’s K1 500m and diver Matthew Mitcham in the men’s 10m platform.

Hooker’s gold was only one of the 14 achieved out of the water. But there were disappointments along the way.

Nine times an Australian climbed onto the blocks in the Water Cube as the world record holder, and only two of them won — Rice in the 200m medley and Leisel Jones in the 100m breaststroke.

The cyclists went from hero to zero, crashing from their most successful Olympics in Athens, which yielded 10 medals, including six gold, to Anna Meares’s solitary silver medal in the women’s sprint — Australian cyclists’ worst return since failing to medal in Moscow in 1980.

Australia’s defending champion men’s field hockey team from Athens were upset by Spain 3-2 in the semi-finals and finished with bronze and the world champion women’s basketball team finished with the silver medal for a third straight time behind the US after a 92-65 loss in the final.—AFP