While Team South Africa’s golden girl Tatjana Smith is set to earn a hefty pay day for her exploits in the pool at the Paris Olympics, Mzansi’s track and field athletes such as Akani Simbine could earn a lot more for a gold medal.
Before the Olympics, the South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (Sascoc) announced their incentive structure for the athletes and coaches.
All Team SA’s individual gold medallists will receive R400,000 for their efforts in Paris, while athletes who earn silver will get R200,000. Athletes who win bronze will receive R100,000.
Their coaches also get a share of the pie, with the gurus earning R100,000 for producing a gold medallist, while silver and bronze will get them R100,000 and R50,000, respectively.
In team sports, such as Rugby Sevens and relays, gold medallists will receive R100,000 each, while their coaches will get the same amount.
A total of R75,000 will be paid out for a silver medal per athlete and R50,000 for bronze.
Two athletes competing in a boat will receive R200,000 each for their efforts if they win a gold medal, with silver and bronze medallists coining R100,000 and R40,000, respectively.
#TeamSA #ForMyCountry #Olympics pic.twitter.com/TiUHQtOgPG
— Team South Africa (@OfficialTeamRSA) July 30, 2024
Smith, formerly known as Schoenmaker before her recent marriage, will receive R400,000 for her gold medal finish in the women’s 100m breaststroke. And she still has her favourite 200m breaststroke to come, which could push her bounty up to R800,000.
But Smith’s earnings in the pool could be dwarfed by the prize money on offer for South Africa’s athletes taking part in the track and field athletics events at the Paris Olympics.
World Athletics announced in April it will become the first international federation to award prize money at an Olympics, beginning at this year's Games in Paris.
Gold medal winners in each of the 48 athletics events in Paris will receive $50,000 (R916,000) and relay teams will receive the same amount, to be shared among team members.
However, prize money for silver and bronze medals will only be extended to the athletes from the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.
South Africa’s Simbine is one of the favourites in the men’s 100m sprint. He could essentially walk away with just over R1.3 million if he manages to beat the likes of Noah Lyles to the title.
Not a bad pay day for 10 seconds’ work!
@JohnGoliath82