Olympic hero Emma McKeon may not even notice the $20,000 she’ll collect for a record Olympic haul that has enshrined her in Australian sporting history.
But it’s those striving away from the spotlight for more glory who will really benefit from the $1.48m being handed out by the Australian Olympic Committee to 108 athletes for their medal-winning performances at the Tokyo Olympic Games.
Silver medal-winning beach volleyballer Mariafe Artacho del Solar said the medal incentive funding, which also rewards performances at other benchmark events, had never been more important for her and her playing partner Taliqua Clancy, with just two years now until Paris 2024.
“It’s motivation to keep working hard and training, to keep going for that success,” Artacho del Solar said.
“To be at the top level in beach volleyball we need to compete internationally. There’s so much involved and the costs add up – travelling, accommodation, venue hire, training, food, health support and more all while being away from home for months at a time.
“Not having much international competition in 2020 and 2021 made it even tougher – our main income is from tournament prizemoney, so the medal incentive funding gave us a lot of relief and motivation to stay focused and stay in it. It plays a massive role, not just in our athletic careers but in everyday life to support ourselves.
“Looking back over the past few years, Taliqua and I were a young, fresh team. For us to have achieved so much in so little time made us so excited to continue, and we haven’t peaked. We have even further to grow and we can’t wait to continue to improve towards Paris 2024.”
With 17 gold, seven silver and 22 bronze medals won by Australians and Australian teams at the Tokyo Olympics, 108 athletes from 15 Olympic disciplines will receive cash payments, with $20,000 for gold, $15,000 for silver and $10,000 for bronze.
The program provides support directly to athletes based on medal results at an Olympic Games and at international benchmark events, such as world championships in non-Olympic years.
More than $10m has been distributed in medal incentive funding directly to athletes since Rio 2016.
“This isn’t a one-off payment or reward for past performances but an ongoing annual program that incentivises and funds Australian athletes to achieve their absolute best on the biggest stage,” AOC chief executive Matt Carroll said.
“The medal incentive funding program is putting money directly into athletes’ hands to support their training and preparation to succeed at the next Olympic Games,”
“While the exploits of the Australian team in Tokyo are still fresh in our minds, Paris is less than 30 months away and hundreds of Australian athletes are already dreaming of wearing the green and gold in 2024.”
McKeon won a record seven medals in the pool in Tokyo, including four gold. But athletes are only eligible for one payment.
Every athlete in a teams events is eligible, however, and silver medal-winning Kookaburraxjmtzyws co-captain and four-time Olympian Eddie Ockenden said the funding was crucial for hockey.
“Spreading the funding across the entire squad was athlete driven and is part of our Kookaburras culture,” he said.
“The importance of the contribution from every player in the squad was even more crucial for our Tokyo Olympic campaign, as the majority of matches in the 12 months leading up were intra-squad games against each other.
“To come so heartbreakingly close to the ultimate prize last year is spurring everyone involved with the Kookaburras on to go one better in Paris in 2024.”
