Australia’s golden girl Emma McKeon could break swimming’s all-time milestones and get zero cash for her troubles.
Our nation’s swimming queen is chasing an unprecedented nine medals at one event.
Already the most prolific female medallist at a single Olympics after winning seven medals at last year’s Tokyo Olympics, the unstoppable McKeon is chasing what would be a record for any swimmer at any major international meeting — including the Olympics, world championships, Commonwealth Games, Pan Pacific championships or continental meetings like the European championships and Asian Championships.
The current record is eight — which American Michael Phelps set at the 2008 Beijing Olympics — but McKeon is aiming to eclipse his mark.
Australia’s Commonwealth Games medal winners will not take home any prizemoney for their success, unlike the nation’s Olympians.
A spokesman for Commonwealth Games Australia confirmed there is no medal incentive scheme for the athletes who come out on top.
Australian Olympians take home $20,000 for a gold medal, $15,000 for a silver and $10,000 for bronze.
“Instead, (Commonwealth Games Australia) funds — not government funds provide significant investment into its member sports and individuals through those sports, as an investment targeting best performance,” the spokesman said.
The organisation has invested $56m into its performancebased program since 1996.
And in the past four years, $11m has gone to member sports preparing for Birmingham, plus an additional $2m boost for competing athletes in the past 18 months.
By contrast, other Commonwealth nations reward individual athletes richly for their success at the Games.
Singaporean athletes will pocket $737,000 for winning gold, though they are required to invest 50 per cent of their winnings back into their chosen sport.
India’s gold medallists will take home the equivalent of $36,000, along with the equivalent of $18,000 for silver medallists and $13,500 for bronze medallists.
After their successes at the 2018 Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast, Samoa’s gold medal winning athletes earned up to $20,000 for their triumph.
Scotland’s gold medal winners can take home more than $17,000, with silver medallists in line for $8600 and bronze medallists $3400.
