Paris 2024: Morocco's Olympic bonuses and record rewards set to be worth their weight in gold
Morocco is gearing up for the Paris 2024 Olympics. The Kingdom is determined to make its mark and has raised its athlete bonuses.
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Gold is worth a lot! The precious metal will no doubt be on the minds of most Moroccan athletes taking part in the 2024 Olympics in Paris. Those who manage to win an individual gold medal will receive 2 million dirhams, around 198,000 euros, under the new scale set by the Moroccan National Olympic Committee (CNOM).
According to the scale revised by the CNOM and the Ministry for Sport, "to better encourage athletes to represent the Kingdom with honour during these Games", individual silver and bronze medallists will pocket 1.25 million dirhams and 750,000 dirhams respectively, the CNOM said this Wednesday 4 January.
Read more on the same subject: Soufiane El Bakkali named best African male athlete of the year
Jackpot for record-breakers!
In group sports (2 to 4 athletes), the bonuses will be 1 million dirhams for a gold medal, around 99,000 euros. Silver medallists will receive about 73,000 euros, against 48,000 euros for those who win bronze. In team sports (more than 5 athletes), the CNOM and the ministry have raised the bonuses to 68,000 euros (gold), 48,000 (silver) and 38,000 euros (bronze).
But the biggest rewards are reserved for record-breakers. Athletes who set records at the 2024 Olympics will receive, on top of their gold medal bonus, 98,000 euros for a world record and half that for an Olympic record. Morocco will be counting in particular on Soufiane El Bakkali, Olympic gold medallist in the 3,000 m steeplechase in Tokyo.
The CNOM and the ministry have also factored in athletes who finish outside the medals. Bonuses for this category will range from 28,000 euros (4th place) to 5,000 euros (21st to 32nd place) in individual sports. In group sports (2 to 4 athletes), these bonuses for non-podium finishers will range between 19,000 and 32,000 euros, while they will be between 14,000 and 24,000 euros in team sports (more than 5). These bonuses will be paid to athletes who have won at least one bout or progressed through at least one round, the Moroccan Olympic Committee is keen to stress.
CNOM warns on ethics
According to the body, they "reward performance and are no longer awarded solely for qualification, with the aim of encouraging qualified athletes to give their best, to raise the quality of Morocco's participation in the 2024 Olympics".
For these Olympic Games, the CNOM has also decided to award a bonus to the technical staff responsible for preparing the qualified athletes, whose names appear in the agreements signed between the CNOM and the Royal Moroccan Federations. "These rewards represent 50% of the total rewards awarded for the athletes' performance at these Games," the body explained. But athletes have been put on notice on the disciplinary front: the bonuses will also be calculated… "according to conditions of behaviour, conduct and ethics that must be respected", the CNOM said.
Mohamed HADJI