Paris Olympics 2024: International Olympic Committee hints at lack of solidarity in athletics prize money decision
- Athletics broke with a 128-year tradition by announcing it would be the first sport to offer US$50,000 in prize money for its Olympic champions
- But IOC president Thomas Bach suggests World Athletics should focus its funding on supporting athletes at the other end of the spectrum
International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach has suggested that instead of offering prize money for Olympic gold medallists in Paris, World Athletics (WA) should focus its funding on supporting athletes at the other end of the spectrum.
Athletics broke with a 128-year tradition in April by announcing it would become the first sport to offer US$50,000 in prize money for its Olympic champions, starting in Paris this year.
The announcement by WA president Sebastian Coe, who is also an IOC member but did not discuss his plan with the Olympic body, was welcomed by many athletes.
It was also met with surprise and sharp criticism by other international sports federations, which accused Coe of failing to consult them before his unilateral move.
“This is not a discussion about prize money because prize money exists for decades,” Bach said in an online media round table on Friday.
“My (fencing) teammates and I in 1976, we received prize money for our gold medal through the foundation supported by the national Olympic Committee (of Germany). In the meantime this is more or less common practice among NOCs.”