Equal premiums for Paralympians and Olympians from Paris 2024? A call round among the Paralympians who provided Belgian medals in Tokyo, yields mixed reactions.
Peter Genyn: “Great, but…
Peter Genyn is a Paralympic winner. After medals at the Paralympic Games in Rio in 2016, he returned from Tokyo with a gold and silver medal in wheelchair sprint.
There is still debate as to whether Tokyo’s medalists will also receive a higher premium retroactively, but if not, the decision will taste bittersweet for 44-year-old Genyn.
“It’s gorgeous!” he responds. “But of course I would have preferred that they had already given this premium at the Paralympic Games in Tokyo.”
“I don’t expect them to do that, but this decision is a good one. It’s a sign that they see us, the Paralympic athletes, as equal. That is good for our sport and very good for us as athletes.”
Ewoud Vromant: “Understand that there was a difference”
Ewoud Vromant won silver in the road time trial in Tokyo. He is happy with the signal, but does not think an equalization of the premiums is entirely logical.
“For Paralympic athletes, it is a good thing that it is being equated and it is first and foremost an important signal to society that Paralympic athletes are not second class citizens.”
“But I have never really felt that they should do this now, because there is indeed a commercial difference between Olympic and Paralympic athletes. The money often comes from commercial partners and then it is understandable that there is a difference.”
Michèle George: “I’m disappointed”
Michèle George would be in serious financial trouble if the premiums were already equalized for Tokyo. As an Olympian she would receive 50,000 euros for her two gold medals twice, as a Paralympian she received 15,000 euros for her first gold and 7,500 euros for her second gold medal.
“I’m actually disappointed, because I had hoped that they would have equated the premiums by now. After all, it is an important signal of integration in society. Now I hear that it is only at the Paralympic Games in Paris and then I am actually deeply disappointed.”
Laurens Devos: “Super news”
Table tennis player Laurens Devos was dominant in his category at the Paralympic Games. It earned him gold and a premium of 15,000 euros. The 21-year-old Devos will undoubtedly also be there at the Paralympic Games in Paris and is happy with the decision.
‘I think this is great news. We also work hard every day to make dreams come true and when I hear that in Paris the premiums will be equal to the Olympians, it is only a positive signal.”
