(3 votes, average: 3.33 out of 5)
Loading ...Many countries pay incentives and sizeable cash rewards to athletes who win medals at the Beijing Olympics.
Canada: The Beijing Olympics marks the first time Canada’s athletes will receive cash for medals. A gold will be worth $20,000, a silver $15,000 and a bronze $10,000.
Philippines: Harry Tanamor is the Philippines’ only boxing hope at the Beijing Games - and if he can bring home the country’s first Olympic gold, he will get a promotion from the rank of sergeant, and a cash bonus, according to the Philippine Armed Forces chief of staff General Alexander Yano.
Philippine government is dangling more incentives to the athlete who brings home the country’s first-ever Olympic gold medal, with the pot now worth 15 million pesos ($313,000).
Belarus: Belarusian athletes who win gold at Beijing will be provided with meat sausages for the rest of their lives.
USA: The United States pays $25,000 US for gold, $15,000 for silver and $10,000 for bronze, while according to the COC Italian athletes earned $180,000 Cdn for winning gold at the 2006 Games in Turin, Italy.
Kenya: The President had said that each Kenyan athlete will receive a cash prize of 750,000 shillings forwinning a gold medal, 500,000 shillings for silver and 250,000 shillings for a bronze medal.
Russia: Since the 1996 Games in Atlanta, the Russian Olympic Committee has awarded $50,000 for every gold medal won by a Russian but will splash out 100,000 euros ($159,500) to Beijing’s Olympic champions.
And the list goes on… Other countries try the stick approach:
UK: BRITAIN’S Olympic athletes risk having their funding cut if they do not return from Beijing with enough medals.
The question is, are those incentives really necessary? Will these athletes really perform better with these incentives? I would like to think that if I was an oylmpic athlete, my performance would not be influenced by these incentives. In some situations I could understand, if winning a gold medal meant the end to poverty. However in most countries, and most disciplines, I imagine that even if it was not for the official incentive, winning would translate in many endorsement deals.
Secondly, rather than spending money on medals, governments could allocate this money for training instead, which in my mind would be a better investment.
Are there any medal winners out there?
Julien:
Great post with interesting information. I’m with you - I have a hard time believing that these awards really make a difference in motivating Olympic level athletes. Not that they mind or don’t appreciate them, I just think - like you - that their motivation comes from a different place. And yes, using the money for training scholarships or opportunities for up and coming athletes who have the drive but not the money does seem like a better way to use what is obviously available funding.
Julien,
I agree with you that paying for medals is probably not necessary, especially not in the US where athletes can receive hefty endorsements if they succeed. Most athletes are internally motivated by love of the sport and cash does not get them to try harder than they would otherwise. Great post!
Nathan
Considering how much money the sponsers of the Games receive in commercial value, it is pathetic how little the athletes receive. If it wasn.t for the athletes there would not be an Olympics.