Add a hint of sex to elite sport, and it`s gold

It`s an irresistible mix and one that Olympians are no longer shy of using to fund their sporting careers.

American Olympic swimming champion Amanda Beard posed naked in Playboy magazine last year and at Beijing stripped off for an advertising campaign to protest against fashion furs.

Image: Olympic swimmers (Left to Right) Amanda Beard, Michael Phelps, Jenny Thompson and Natalie Coughlin pose on 24 August 2004, during a photocall in Athens.

Text: Reuters | Images: AFP, Getty (Any unauthorised reproduction is prohibited)

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