Competitive sporting and financial security

I went to put my daughter for swimming classes for the summer. The coach was an affable young lady with the curiosity of a kid. So she opened up easily when asked about her swimming background. She said she was a state level swimmer and was doing well at the nationals. At one point she had to choose between competitive swimming, which is a shot at glory, but comes with financial uncertainties, and coaching school kids. She pointed to an old poor looking woman at the edge of the pool and said "My mom used to work as a house help. Coaching brings regular income to my family. So I chose coaching over competitive swimming".  I do not know  if this is a representative case. But it complements the sentiment other news reports about poor sportsmen and sportswomen in lesser followed sports.  It appears that India has a better chance of converting sporting potential into medals if sportsmen and sportswomen of poor backgound are rewarded with fiinancial security for their perseverance