 Alex Archer is a 15-year-old Kiwi who has her heart set on winning gold in the 100m freestyle at the 1960 Rome Olympics. Unlike today s professionally-trained swimmers, Alex is expected to not only train, but keep up with her schoolwork, piano lessons and ballet classes. Her training conditions are primitive, and it doesn t help her that Alex s family are battlers who fail to share her dream. And Alex has a worse problem to face - the death of her boyfriend. Will Alex achieve her dream?