The USA’s momentum on the road to the Olympics cannot be slowed down, it seems. The 2024 Bahamas Relays has become the starting point for the country’s relay teams’ journey to Paris and what an event it has been! Over the last two days, Noah Lyles, Gabby Thomas, and their teammates have bagged several gold medals, along with securing their spot at the upcoming Games. And it’s not just about the glory of the medals. The incentive of financial gains isn’t all too negligible either, and the 2024 World Athletics Relays has proven to be a highly beneficial affair.

According to a recent article by the Arkansas Razorbacks website, Tamari Davis & Co. will return from the Bahamas with a lot to show for, and not just in terms of medals won. The article reveals that the winning teams at the World Relays are to be awarded $40,000, while the second and third-place finishers will receive $20,000 and $10,000 respectively. With the USA finishing first in four out of five events (4x400m mixed relays, 4x100m women’s relays, 4x400m women’s relays, and 4x100m men’s relays), Team USA will be bringing home $160,000 prize money.

The chances of making it five out of five went south when the men’s 4x400m relay team was disqualified yesterday in the first heat after Champion Allison’s rookie mistake of trying to swap starting positions with his Japanese opponent. Still, the results aren’t poor by any means, and it waits to be seen if the reigning world champion Lyles and his international teammates can replicate their sensational form on the banks of the Seine River in July as well. Now that the USA is sure to have at least four Olympic teams representing the country in Paris, more prize money also awaits to be claimed.

More opportunities for Noah Lyles and others

In April, the apex body of the world’s track and field sports, the World Athletics, announced that gold winners at the 2024 Paris Olympics will be awarded $50,000 each. With relay teams, the four participants will have to split $12,500 among themselves. On the other hand, the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee also announced that Olympic gold winners will be given $37,500 upon returning home from Paris with gold around their necks. Additionally, a $22,500 prize for silver and $15,000 for bronze medalists were also announced by the national governing body.

However, the meager amounts of these prizes were not well received by fans or veteran Olympians. Many argued that such a low payout wouldn’t even motivate athletes to keep pushing themselves every day on the tracks. There were more arguments. IOC President Thomas Bach made his thoughts clear about the matter. According to him, international sports federations like track and field should focus on reducing inequalities between countries rather than handing out prizes to winners. “International federations must treat all their member federations and their athletes equally and try to close the gap between the privileged and the less privileged or underprivileged,” Bach had said.

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While the issue waits to be straightened out, fans hope that the USA’s athletes look at the bigger prize ahead and try to keep their best forms that were on display in all their glory at the World Athletics Relays.