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I've been in the Swiss town they call the Olympic capital this week talking to the movers and shakers of international sport.

The conversations in , where the is based, soon got around to the impact of the global financial crisis on sport and the government and faced criticism.

Jizhong Wei, the new head of the , told me he was disappointed with last week's decision by to cut funding to eight of Britain's lower-profile sports including his.

It was one of the enduring sights of the 2008 Olympics: Katherine Grainger, who had just become the first British woman in any sport to have won medals at three successive Games, on the podium.

And it now promises to be one of the stories of London 2012 as Grainger has until the age of 36 in the hope of finally winning gold.

Think Steve Redgrave - after battles with diabetes and colitis - in Sydney having won his fifth Olympic title.

Think after his crew overcame losing a team-member to injury at the last minute to win a heart-stopping final and he gained his fourth gold.

Grainger's story may have been less celebrated so far because she has never taken the top step on the podium but it gains even more significance now as she tries once again to do so.