TORONTO -- The Canadian Olympic Committee rewarded Beijing Olympic medal winners with cash for the first time in its history on Saturday, presenting 34 athletes with cheques for their accomplishments.
But it won't quite have the spending power that they'd hoped.
Many athletes were under the impression the money was tax-free -- the $18,000 in annual funding they receive from the federal government isn't taxed. When the Canadian Olympic Committee announced prize money for medals a year ago, their only comment was that they were checking into it.
But athletes were sent forms recently by the COC which informed them "the COC requested and received an opinion from the Canada Revenue Agency supporting our position that such payments are taxable income."
A total of $515,000 was handed out under the Athlete Excellence Fund, a new financial incentive fund unveiled last November.
Under the program, Canadian Olympians received $20,000 for each gold medal won, $15,000 for each silver and $10,000 for each bronze.
In Ontario, assuming an athlete doesn't have additional income and is single, that would mean a $2,140 hit on gold-medal prize and $1,037 on the silver-medal award. Bronze-medal winners won't have to pay taxes on their $10,000 if they didn't make additional income.
Lou Ragagnin, the committee's chief operating officer, praised the group of athletes who gathered in Toronto before presenting the cheques.
"We believe that any athlete who's competing for their country and earns a podium position should be well rewarded with a small token of our appreciation," Ragagnin said.
Liam Parsons, a rower from Thunder Bay, Ont., said training is a full-time pursuit and the award will help many of the Olympians recoup costs spent on the way to winning the medal.
"When you're preparing for the races (the money) is in the back of your mind, but when you get to the start line and you start racing, it's the last thing in your mind," said Parson, who won bronze in the lightweight men's four.
Priscilla Lopes-Schliep, who won a bronze medal in the 100 metre hurdles, said the money will help her reach her next goal, a gold medal.
"It's too hard to wake up in the morning, go to work and then go to practice. I'm drained, I'm tired, and it didn't work," said the Whitby, Ont., resident.
"Now, I'm just focusing 100 per cent on competing."
-- The Canadian Press
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