In 1986, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) revised its governing charter to encourage “the participation of all the world's great male and female athletes.” Although it may seem mildly worded, this charter change was a shock event for the almost century-old sports institution at the time. For the first time since its creation in the late 19th century, the modern Olympic Games allowed professional athletes to compete alongside a previously closely guarded roster of amateur athletes. The game will never be the same again.
With all eyes now on Paris ahead of the upcoming 2024 Summer Olympics, this year's Olympics will experiment with similar historic changes. For the first time in Olympic history, some athletes will receive participation fees from an international organization, marking the beginning of a new chapter for athletes and the sport. In a statement released earlier this month, World Athletics President Sebastian Coe said the organization (the world governing body for the sport of track and field) would award 50,000 yen to each of the 48 Olympic gold medal winners in track and field. announced that it would award the dollar. . The commitment also includes a “firm commitment to increasing prize money on a progressive level” for other medalists at the 2028 Los Angeles Games.
Coe said that while it's impossible to put a price on becoming an Olympic athlete, “it starts somewhere and a portion of the revenue generated by athletes at the Olympic Games goes directly back to the people who organize the Olympic Games.” It is important to ensure that this is done.” That is the global scene. ”
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Although Olympic athletes “have often been compensated by sponsors and participating experts for years,” the move to actively compensate athletes is a major challenge for the Olympics. “It's a big change,” Reuters said. Track and field remains one of the biggest and most-watched parts of the Olympics, but “the vast majority of athletes, including many medalists, face a constant struggle to raise funds.” ”. Some countries provide financial compensation to Olympic athletes, but “the amounts vary,” the Washington Post said, adding that the U.S. Olympic Committee's payments after the 2021 Tokyo Summer Games are “one of the world's largest.” “This is on the lower end of the cash incentives scale.” Finances could be precarious for athletes in sports that “don't have professional leagues and can't stand on the podium at the Olympics.”
“I hope…that we can transition to all the other sports as well,” Team USA diver Andrew Capobianco told The Associated Press. “They are the pioneers of that.” Capobianco added: “It would be great if there was more funding for Olympic athletes, especially the smaller sports.”
However, not everyone is so keen. Andy Anson, president of the British Olympic Association, criticized World Athletics' move in an interview with Sky News, saying: “When a sport is canceled and they do something on their own, that doesn't include that sport, it doesn't include the IOC. , and that sport is not included.” “The situation, which includes national Olympic committees,” means that “other sports are obviously under scrutiny and athletes are saying, 'Well, what do we do? How can we do this sport and not other sports?' This could create a situation where the government would be under pressure to do so. David Lapartient, president of the International Cycling Union, shared this sentiment, saying a unilateral announcement was “not in the spirit of the Olympics.”
What's next?
The organization said World Athletics' prize money would be collected from “the International Olympic Committee's revenue share that World Athletics receives every four years.” In a statement to NBC, the IOC stressed that it is “up to each international federation and national Olympic committee to decide how best to serve athletes and the global development of sport.” However, NBC noted that “there could be a domino effect if the sports world responds.”
After all, as a global body, compensating athletes would not “in the slightest” undermine the Olympic ideals of fair sportsmanship, Coe explained. He doesn't “sing a good song about the importance”; [the athletes] “That praise needs to be reflected,” Mr Coe told Sky News. He acknowledged that “not everyone can win an Olympic title in the 100m or 1,500m,” but added: “At the end of the day, we have 48 events and this is about helping the athletes. It will be.”
