Goldengirl

Goldine, too, has had to curtail her social life since joining the gold rush. ‘I’m a normal girl, and I like going out with guys as much as anyone,’ she confides, ‘but you have to make sacrifices. I’ll make up later.’ Nineteen, with cornflower-blue eyes that light up in surprise each time anyone suggests she is America’s Olympic hope, she reveals an innocence of her commercial potential that would gladden the hearts of the International Olympic Committee. ‘Endorsement contracts? What are they? Look, I’m only just beginning to think of myself as a runner. Don’t confuse me any more by turning me into some kind of merchandise.’

Goldine might deny it to herself, but the middlemen who made a killing each Olympic year are already jostling on the sidelines over the right to manage the girl who could become the hottest property in U.S. sport. ‘There have been inquiries from agents, it’s true,’ says Professor Serafin. ‘Of course, Goldine isn’t considering anything like this. If she won a gold medal, I wouldn’t know what to advise. It’s really up to her. We’re just ordinary people with no experience of sports. She’s doing this for America, not with any profit motive.’