The pandemic scourging the world is making more victims than just the ones listed among the deceased. Speaking in abstract terms, the biggest victim of the epidemic is the world economy due, in good part, to the unpreparedness of the various governments, accustomed to short-term, just-in-time, management. This blog does not have any political velleities and while the global situation is utterly worrisome, this is not a question that I am willing to address (be it only due to my complete incompetence in the politico-economic domain).
This article is about a particular class of victims of the pandemic: african athletes. Everyone is suffering, from the very best to the "also-ran" ones. The cancellation of all major competitions in 2020 is wreaking havoc upon the preparation (and the morale) of the athletes, but also puts them in financial dire straits.
The four athletes in the photo above do not need a special introduction. Ivorian sprinter M.-J TaLou is world vice-champion, congolese shot putter F. Elemba was 4th in the previous Olympics, burkinabé triple jumper H.-F. Jango is world bronze medalist. All of them are African champions. Beninese heptathlete O. Ahouanwanou is african vice-champion and 8th at the 2019 World's. All of them agree that postponing the Olympics was a good decision, but as Zango, points out: "we have been waiting for the Games for four years". And TaLou does not hesitate to mention the financial consequences of the disruption of the calendar. "I live only on my results, meeting bonuses and sponsor money. If there isn't all that, we have nothing", she said. And she is not among the underprivileged ones.
Runners can make money in three ways: through sponsors (for the ones who manage to have them), prize money from races (and sometimes bonuses for performance) and appearance fees. Many african athletes do not have sponsors and travel to Europe in order to compete and make some money. But if there are no races there is no chance for prizes or appearance fees. And when we are talking about money you should keep in mind that athletics is not really lucrative. We are talking here about peanuts compared to other professional sports. A continental Tour winner of an event can make 6000 $ while the 8th finisher makes just 800 $. Road-racing money is slightly better: an "ordinary" good marathon runner can make as little as 1000 $ in a race (of course the top-class ones are making more than 100000 $). Shoe contracts can help, the smaller ones being as low as 5000 $ per year (again with the top ones exceeding 100000 $). But not everyone has shoe contracts. If an athlete does not compete his income is severely amputated. (I have already written about the unacceptable treatment of pregnant athletes).
Nobody knows what will the future be made of. In the mean time some federations are financially helping their athletes. World Athletics has launched a fund of half a million dollars for the support of professional athletes who have lost most of their income. So (professional) athletes who are experiencing financial hardship due to the pandemic can obtain a (one-off) welfare grant. The fund is meant for athletes who have met the Tokyo Olympic Games entry standard and who are unable to maintain their basic standard of living. Moreover they must have never had an anti-doping rule violation. It goes without saying that athletes of the world elite who are making money form other sources are not eligible.
The federation of Kenya, with the help of Marathon legend E. Kipchoge who was appointed ambassador of the relief project by the Ministry of Sports, came to the aid of less fortunate athletes: they constitute the majority of those who have lost potential income due to the cancellation of races. For the athletes, the training and competition programme of whose has been perturbed, meeting Kipchoge in person was also a morale boost. And, speaking about Kipchoge, it is clear that his programme has also been seriously disrupted, with the London Marathon postponed till October and the Olympic one pushed to next year.
A BBC article (which was the inspiration of this post) presents the photo above with the caption "African athletes have been grounded by the widespread suspension of the sport". Nothing could be more true. The T&F athletes of Africa are indeed among the collateral victims of the pandemic.
This article is about a particular class of victims of the pandemic: african athletes. Everyone is suffering, from the very best to the "also-ran" ones. The cancellation of all major competitions in 2020 is wreaking havoc upon the preparation (and the morale) of the athletes, but also puts them in financial dire straits.
TaLou, Elemba, Zango, Ahouanwanou
The four athletes in the photo above do not need a special introduction. Ivorian sprinter M.-J TaLou is world vice-champion, congolese shot putter F. Elemba was 4th in the previous Olympics, burkinabé triple jumper H.-F. Jango is world bronze medalist. All of them are African champions. Beninese heptathlete O. Ahouanwanou is african vice-champion and 8th at the 2019 World's. All of them agree that postponing the Olympics was a good decision, but as Zango, points out: "we have been waiting for the Games for four years". And TaLou does not hesitate to mention the financial consequences of the disruption of the calendar. "I live only on my results, meeting bonuses and sponsor money. If there isn't all that, we have nothing", she said. And she is not among the underprivileged ones.
Paris Marathon
Runners can make money in three ways: through sponsors (for the ones who manage to have them), prize money from races (and sometimes bonuses for performance) and appearance fees. Many african athletes do not have sponsors and travel to Europe in order to compete and make some money. But if there are no races there is no chance for prizes or appearance fees. And when we are talking about money you should keep in mind that athletics is not really lucrative. We are talking here about peanuts compared to other professional sports. A continental Tour winner of an event can make 6000 $ while the 8th finisher makes just 800 $. Road-racing money is slightly better: an "ordinary" good marathon runner can make as little as 1000 $ in a race (of course the top-class ones are making more than 100000 $). Shoe contracts can help, the smaller ones being as low as 5000 $ per year (again with the top ones exceeding 100000 $). But not everyone has shoe contracts. If an athlete does not compete his income is severely amputated. (I have already written about the unacceptable treatment of pregnant athletes).
Nobody knows what will the future be made of. In the mean time some federations are financially helping their athletes. World Athletics has launched a fund of half a million dollars for the support of professional athletes who have lost most of their income. So (professional) athletes who are experiencing financial hardship due to the pandemic can obtain a (one-off) welfare grant. The fund is meant for athletes who have met the Tokyo Olympic Games entry standard and who are unable to maintain their basic standard of living. Moreover they must have never had an anti-doping rule violation. It goes without saying that athletes of the world elite who are making money form other sources are not eligible.
The federation of Kenya, with the help of Marathon legend E. Kipchoge who was appointed ambassador of the relief project by the Ministry of Sports, came to the aid of less fortunate athletes: they constitute the majority of those who have lost potential income due to the cancellation of races. For the athletes, the training and competition programme of whose has been perturbed, meeting Kipchoge in person was also a morale boost. And, speaking about Kipchoge, it is clear that his programme has also been seriously disrupted, with the London Marathon postponed till October and the Olympic one pushed to next year.
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