Gold diggers get dudded
Aussie athletes languish behind the world in medal incentive payments
AUSTRALIA has been shamed by revelations it trails the rest of the world in Olympic athlete medal incentives, sparking urgent calls for a funding revolution to rescue its stars “from the breadline”.
An investigation by swimming website Swimswam has ranked Australia last of 19 nations in financial rewards for athletes who win medals — below sports superpowers such as the USA, Russia and Germany, but also the likes of Azerbaijan, Malaysia and Thailand.
While Australian athletes are promised $20,000 for a gold, $15,000 for silver and $10,000 for bronze, Singapore athletes can earn $1,005,000 for winning gold, even though swimmer Joseph Schooling is their only podium topper.
Other nations such as Russia ($82,000) and the USA ($50,000) are more in Australia’s
range. With Brisbane set to be awarded the 2032 Olympics, former beach volleyball gold medallist and Queensland Olympic Council president Natalie Cook is adamant the funding structure must change and will work on a plan she hopes to present to Prime Minister Scott Morrison.
Other high-level talks have also taken place in recent weeks as the Australian Olympic Committee meets the funding challenge head-on.
“I know how hard it is – I have been there — but rather than whinge I want to be part of the solution and I’m calling on everyone to come together and update a system which was put in place for the Sydney Olympics but must be upgraded, particularly for Brisbane 2032,’’ Cook said.
“It would be different if our support along the way was on a par with the rest of the world but we are so far behind.
“The softball girls had to pay to go to the Olympic selection camp in Sydney. There is no health cover, no sick pay, no super and if you get injured you can lose your funding.’’
Some nations such as Sweden don’t have medal rewards while other countries such as South Korea offer military exemptions. A German sponsor once offered free beer for life for gold medallists.
While the AIS hands out $14 million a year to athletes, including up to $35,000 for those placed first in a world championship, a recent survey of 521 athletes conducted by the non-profit, fundraising Australian Sports Foundation found many were teetering on the brink of retirement.
Just under half of the survey respondents revealed they were earning beneath $23,000 a year, which is what a single, unemployed person is allowed to claim on benefits and well below the minimum wage of $39,000.