‘Chlorine boy’ Mark Foster on how he persevered with swimming despite struggling to pay the bills

Former Olympic and Commonwealth swimmer Mark Foster found fame as the fastest 15-year-old swimmer in the world back in 1985, but it would take him another seven years of hard work and perseverance before he was financially secure enough to become a full-time professional swimmer.

Despite his many subsequent achievements including six World Championship titles, two Commonwealth titles, and eleven European titles, it wasn’t immediately obvious to Foster that his swimming successes would even pay his bills.

Speaking to broadcaster Kirsty Gallacher on Bestinvest’s Give Us Your Goals podcast, Foster explains how he worked multiple jobs ‘to make ends meet’ from fitting windows to couriering, it wouldn’t be until 1992 that Foster found financial security. The champion swimmer admits that his difficult financial circumstances pushed him to be the best. He says, ‘If I didn’t perform well, I didn’t earn, so that’s probably why I was a better athlete’.

From athleticism to the ballroom, as a novice dancer on Strictly Come Dancing, it’s safe to say that Mark Foster has set and achieved a combination of challenging goals throughout his career. Yet, he also gives credit to his failures, as he says, ‘You learn more from losing than you do from winning’.

Despite his injury setback at the 2004 Olympics, Foster trained vigorously to compete in the Indianapolis World Championships just six months later because as he says, ‘you can’t change what has happened, but you can change what happens in the future’. He proved this statement by winning gold at the championships.

Foster shares these insights and more as part of the latest Bestinvest ‘Give Us Your Goals’ podcast, which explores the importance of setting goals in everyday life.

Alongside the podcast series, Bestinvest has launched a Give Us Your Goals Fund, which consists of £20,000 and offers four people a chance to win £5,000 each, together with a professional financial consultation to help achieve one of their own lifelong goals. To apply candidates simply need to tell Bestinvest about their goals and what it would mean to achieve them (T&Cs apply).

Mark Foster’s Give Us Your Goals episode is one of a brand new six-part series hosted by broadcaster Kirsty Gallacher and produced in collaboration with former BBC Radio 5 Live producer Guy Kilty.

The series features six celebrity guests, including Paula Radcliffe, Michaela Strachan, Terry Waite, Babatúndé Aléshé and Billy Billingham, and discusses the importance of goals in everyday life. https://www.bestinvest.co.uk/give-us-your-goals

Bestinvest’s Give Us Your Goals Study surveyed 2,000 people across the UK between the ages of 18 to 65+. The survey was carried out by global market research firm 3Gem between May 13 to May 18, 2022.

If you would like help achieving your financial goals, Bestinvest offers a wide range of investments, free financial coaching, low-cost bite-sized advice packages, smart digital risk assessment and planning tools and competitive pricing. Visit Bestinvest.co.uk to learn more.