IT BRINGS tears to your eyes doesn't it.

Three netball teams from York's Joseph Rowntree School qualify for the finals of a prestigious national competition.

And their reward for representing Yorkshire and Humberside - a once-in-a-lifetime chance to have your school teacher wax your legs so you can scramble together £3,000 to compete.

Absolute madness.

Credit where it's due, their commitment and enthusiasm is second to none. But how can we nurture that kind of attitude into a next generation of sporting excellence?

We have also seen representative football teams asked to pay for the privilege of pulling on a York area shirt to cover refereeing and travel costs.

Sport in this country is in the middle of a chronic identity crisis.

We, as a nation, want to be successful, but we are too willing to put a budget on it.

National bodies will tell you forever how they support 'grassroots projects', but if you actually ask around, you will find that most received little or no help, meaning that the costs are transferred to the community.

The players, the parents, even local businesses are being relied upon to take these sporting talents forward to the next level.

We are bidding to host the 2012 Olympics but we are sending out a conflicting message to the athletes who will be making up the team in seven years time.

Why is it that we are so inherently willing to lose?

Three words for you: Eddie the Eagle. If you are anything like me then you'll be squirming with embarrassment at the memory.

The man became a national hero in the Winter Olympics - for coming last. His heroic feat? Not getting killed in the ski jump.

Admittedly, the wheels of change are slowly being cranked into gear.

The national swimming team have drafted in Aussie hard man Bill Sweetenham to radically overhaul the coaching and training set-up in this country.

The fact he is from one of the world's most competitive - and successful - countries is hardly a coincidence.

Picture this... a beach in Sydney, the day after the Aussies lost the rugby union World Cup. The sun is shining and there are two natives discussing the final. 'Never mind, at least we got that far and tried hard...'

If you can see it in your mind you're doing well because that would never happen.

There would be inquests, moral outcries and big question marks following the depressed sports-lovers round as they tried to work out what went wrong and how to do it better.

After every major football tournament, England fans are left shrugging their shoulders, casting off their distant dreams of glory - maybe even making a final - to next time.

And here's the best bit. If you are single-handedly to blame for crushing the nation's hopes - we'll make you into a hero, too.

Gareth Southgate and Stuart Pearce both landed Pizza Hut deals after fluffing England's Euro 96 chances.

If you do well, we'll humiliate you a la Matthew Pinsent's tears of pride at last summer's games - he got a tissue deal. If you're good and you know it - you're blasted as arrogant and you lose your support.

People say over and over again that winning isn't everything. They're wrong.

Exercise and having fun are about taking part. Sport is about winning.

That glory may come at a cost but when is national pride something you're willing to put a price on.

TKO this week was written by Claire Hughes.

Updated: 09:39 Tuesday, March 08, 2005