大象传媒

Beijing

The pattern of the is already set, and seems likely to achieve success in the same areas as their Olympic predecessors.

So with and one swimming gold after the first day, what is it about these sports which has shot Britain to prominence in areas where we had formerly struggled? And how does Paralympics provision compare with Olympic provision?

Make no mistake, this success, with this level of consistency, is about money.

It is lottery funding, channelled through , which is designed to meet the athletes day-to-day living costs so that they can concentrate full-time on their sport, and provide the money that allows them to train, travel and compete to bring them to their peak at exactly the right time.

Paralympic cyclists and swimmers in particular are integrated into the programmes that their Olympic counterparts follow; so that, for example, the cyclists train in Manchester, follow the same regimes and even share each other's equipment (our first gold medallist, , was using Chris Hoy's handlebars, and Jason Queally's frame).

But, there is quite a large disparity in the amount of cash the Olympians and the Paralympians are given.

And the gap is getting wider. Over the four-year period between Athens and Beijing, the Olympic funding trebled, to 拢235m. On the other hand, Paralympic provision, which stood at 拢14m, only slightly more than doubled, to almost 拢30m.

To put it another way, compare that 拢30m with the 拢22m given to the alone. So, in this age when the Olympic movement aspires to include the Paralympians as full partners, is this fair and equal?

Liz Nicol, director of elite performance for UK Sport, insists that it is. She points out that the pathway of an Olympic athlete is longer, and more expensive to follow; more competitions to fund, more travel, and a free market which means Olympic coaches are more expensive to hire.

The essential calculation they make, taking into account an individual athlete's likelihood of achieving a medal, plus future potential, is exactly the same. And significantly, Paralympic coaches and athletes we've spoken to seem to agree.

gets 拢24,000 a year so that, as he puts it, "I can put food on the table and pay my fuel bills without worrying".

And Tim Reddish, national performance director, whose , points out that with millions of pounds of lottery money invested by ordinary people, it is a business, and people are entitled to medals for their investment.

The question that lingers, though, is whether more investment in developing Paralympic sport would bring those pathways closer to Olympic levels.

You can hear more on the funding of our Paralympians on You & Yours on 大象传媒 Radio 4 just after midday on Monday.