One of the great frustrations for many involved in a variety of Scottish sports down the years has been the way players are effectively anointed as the senior internationalists of the future at a ridiculously early age.
It was, then, refreshing to talk to Ally Whyke, Scottish Swimming's performance director, about what has contributed to this country's successes in Olympic and Commonwealth pools in recent years.
He and Ashley Howard, the chief executive, were explaining how the presence of six Scots in the GB Olympic team and five more in the Paralympic team is the result of a 20-year-plan that was born of the realisation that the sport simply was not achieving what it should.
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