The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has taken a significant decision to start paying athletes who compete at the Summer and Winter Olympic Games.
All Olympians are now entitled to receive a grant of $10,000 from the IOC, and will receive the funding six months after competing.
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This represents the end of close to 130 years of tradition, in terms of Olympic athletes being paid.
Receiving the money is only dependent on the athlete not failing a doping test or contravening the IOC's Olympic charter in any way.
The payments will start with athletes who took part in the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics earlier this year, with around 14,000 expected to be eligible once the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028 are also taken into account. The IOC is, therefore, setting aside $140 million from each games for these grants and expects to make initial payments to those Winter Olympians next year.
Pau Gasol, the former Spanish basketball icon who is now head of the IOC's athletes' commission, said: "This grant will be available to every Olympian. Not just medal winners, not just athletes from certain countries, every Olympian. Because while every athlete’s journey is different, every Olympian has made sacrifices to reach the Olympic stage, years of dedication, years of hard work, years of believing in a dream.
"This is about recognising the journey and the commitment it takes to become an Olympian. And it is about recognising that every Olympian is part of our Olympic community, and honouring those who have come before us and paved the way, so that current and future generations of Olympians can benefit."
Kirsty Coventry, president of the IOC, added: "It [funding Olympians] has been a topic of conversation for many years, and I am extremely proud that we are now able to do this."
This money will be delivered through the various National Olympic Committees, and all athletes will have to specifically apply for it.
This move from the IOC follows on from the World Athletics governing body offering prize money to gold medallists at the Paris 2024 Olympics, with this scheme to be extended to bronze and silver medallists for the Los Angeles games.
World Athletics paid gold medallists from Paris $50,000 each.
