Paris Olympics 2024: Team USA’s Pay Surpassed By World Athletics’s $50,000 Promise To Gold Medal Winners

In the eagerly anticipated Paris Olympics 2024, Team USA athletes face an unexpected disparity as World Athletics offers a $50,000 bonus to gold medalists, eclipsing their national team’s compensation. Despite the prestige of representing their country, American athletes are confronted with the sobering reality of financial inequality on the global stage.

World Athletics has made a historic move, breaking 128 years of Olympic record by offering monetary rewards to athletes for winning gold at the games. This decision sets the organization on a potential dispute with the International Olympic Committee, marking a significance international sports to give athletes money for winning a gold medal at the Games. How goes this deconstruction? Read on to find out.

World Athletics’ bold move: Rewriting Olympic history with cash incentives

Recently, World Athletics announced price money distribution for Olympic gold medallists at upcoming Paris Olympics 2024 on X handle stating, “World Athletics introduces prize money for Olympic gold medallists at Paris 2024, and all medallists from LA28.” IOC currently confirmed that U.S. athletes didn’t get paid to compete in the Olympics. Athletes competing in the Paris Olympics can now earn money not only through traditional medal winnings but also via sponsorships and other benefits. While U.S. athletes do not receive compensation solely for participating, Team USA does offer financial rewards for winning medals. Currently, gold medalists receive $37,500, silver medalists receive $22,500, and bronze medalists receive $15,000 in both the Olympic and Paralympic Games.

World Athletics President Seb Coe justified the move by stating that it was appropriate for the federation to assign $2.4 million of its IOC funding every four years to reward athletes for their achievements. He said, “The introduction of prize money for Olympic gold medallists is a pivotal moment for World Athletics and the sport of athletics as a whole, underscoring our commitment to empowering the athletes and recognising the critical role they play in the success of any Olympic Games”. U.S. athletes are exempt from “victory tax” on reward money, due to a bill signed by former President Barack Obama in October 2016. Team USA survey found that over half of athletes earn under $25,000 during the Olympic year; 25% rely on non-sports income.

Top athletes within the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee’s Athlete Performance Pool receive direct funding, including grants, medical benefits, Operation Gold payments, and tuition assistance, as stated on Team USA’s website. Now the community is navigating the balance between upholding traditional Olympic values and ensuring equitable athlete compensation.

Paris Olympics 2024: Negotiating equity in Olympic athlete compensation

World Athletics stipulated that athletes must undergo standard anti-doping procedures before receiving their monetary rewards at the event. In 2021, the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee awarded $37,500 to gold medalists at the Tokyo Summer Games. Singapore’s National Olympic Council promises $1 million for Olympic gold, a feat achieved once by a Singaporean competitor.

This World Athletics’ decision may signal Seb Coe’s ambitions for the Olympics if he pursues the IOC presidency. Last year, when asked about running for the IOC’s top post after Thomas Bach’s term ends in 2025, Coe did not rule out the possibility and said, “I haven’t ruled it in, and I certainly haven’t ruled it out”.. Will this paradigm shift lead to greener pastures? Time will tell.

Read More: Escalating Threats to the 2024 Paris Olympics: Are the Pinnacle Games Safe?