According to a recent SBS story, although Olympic competitors will get gold bonuses for their achievements in Tokyo, Paralympians will not.
This is not entirely wrong, however, if you were to ask whether Paralympians get paid the same as their Olympic counterparts, the answer would be no. The response would be a resounding nay.
The Australian Olympic Committee provides a medal bonus financial reward of $20,000 for gold medalists, $15,000 for silver medalists, and $10,000 for bronze medalists.
Paralympics Australia, on the other hand, has no money to give its participants.
Their money is spent just getting the athletes to the games and getting them there securely, which has not been simple this year. Remember that these organisations operate independently of one another and with completely distinct sponsors.
There are several financing programs available to Paralympic athletes. The first, and most important, is the Australian Government's dAIS program. This program, which is part of the Australian Institute of Sport's high-performance plan, seeks to provide athletes with direct financial assistance. This money is accessible all year, not just during the Games, and is distributed every six months.
There are several qualifying requirements to fulfill, such as means-testing and the athlete's global ranking.
This money is intended for athletes competing in the Olympic, Paralympic, and Commonwealth Games. This money is also available to all athletes. Some athletes with exceptionally large earnings (perhaps from sponsorships) are ineligible because their earnings already exceed the threshold.
As a 2016 Paralympian, this is the most important financing for my training. This funding increases depending on your global standing at important benchmark meetings, such as the Olympics this year. The better you perform, the more money you will get.
Following that, financing is determined by the sport.
Medal incentives may and are offered by national sports organisations. During a Games year, these incentives often rise.
Different sports may approach this differently; for example, in swimming, there is a dedicated "medal pool" that is split into shares for medal winners. For example, a gold medal is worth 10 shares for Para athletes, a silver medal is 7.5 shares, and a bronze medal is worth 5. Relays cost a little less.
The distinction arises when we consider how much money is really in the medal pool.
Olympic swimmers have a medal pool of $170,000 at the 2020 Tokyo Games, whilst Paralympic swimmers receive just $50,000. In perspective, it is insufficient to pay the expense of my prosthetic limb.
Furthermore, as a swimmer (again, depending on performance rankings), athletes are eligible for financing from our NSO throughout the year. It is, however, less than the Olympic program. Individual state institutes of sport may provide further assistance, and they typically have money to pay the expenses of things like physiotherapy, nutritionists, and psychologists.
Finally, scholarships and mentorships are available via organisations such as the Australian Sports Hall of Fame.
Various NSOs may give different sums to their athletes depending on sponsors and financing. Whilst recognising that politics, team sponsorships, and NSO revenue all play a role in why there is less money for Para athletes, at the end of the day, we earn less than able-bodied athletes for performing the same work.
Whilst there is tremendous support for para-athletes in all sports, and this has grown since the first Paralympic games when competitors had to pay their way to go, there is still a long way to go.
You have to work hard to acquire the money to cover the costs of training centres, trainers, physio, physicians, mobility equipment (race wheelchairs and prostheses), competition travel, and fees, all of which are required to compete with the best in the world.
There are fund-raising efforts in place to raise funds for Tokyo medalists, which comes with its own set of difficulties. Some athletes in sports such as taekwondo will get no money for any medal, whilst others in sports such as swimming or athletics would receive some money, although not enough. Other athletes' sponsorship arrangements may include medal incentives as well.
Donating to Paralympic Australia is a wonderful place to start if you want to assist our Paralympic athletes, past, present, and future. But, more importantly, tune in to Channel 7 to watch and support our Paralympians, as it is public support and knowledge that will help guarantee our funding grows.
