Slovenia offers rewards for Olympic medalists
http://www.huanqiu.com 来源：新华网 网友评论条进入论坛 2008-01-16 09:44
BELGRADE, Jan. 15 (Xinhua) -- The Slovenian Olympic Committee adopted on Tuesday a incentive package for Slovenian medalists at Olympic Games and world championships in the Olympic sports in a bid to reward top-flight athletes in the tiny former Yugoslav republic.
The executive board of the Committee confirmed a scheme by which medal winners at the Olympics and world championships in Olympic sports will receive prizes from a special fund each month for four years, the Slovenian national news agency STA reported.
Under the plan, gold at the Olympics would be worth 50,145 euros (74,545 U.S. dollars), silver 37,609 euros (55,909 dollars),and bronze 25,067 euros (37,265) in total. Gold at a world championship in the Olympic sports will meanwhile be rewarded with 33,095 euros (49,199 dollars), silver with 24,571 euros (36,527 dollars), and bronze with 16,548 euros (24,600 dollars) in total.
The rewards are aimed at improving social security of Slovenia's top-flight athletes and should give them an incentive to extend their careers, the Olympic Committee said. The move comes after a number of high-profile retirements in recent years by young athletes complaining about their financial well being.
The committee will also reward best achievements with a one-off payout: Olympic gold medalists will get 3,500 euros (5,203 dollars), while the amounts for silver and bronze medals will stand at 85 percent and 70 percent of that amount. The awards willbe awarded starting with last year.
The committee also discussed plans for the upcoming Summer Olympics in Beijing and a meeting of sport ministers and presidents of national Olympic committees of the EU, which will beheld on March 17 at Brdo pri Kranju in the suburbs of the capital Ljubljana. The meeting will focus on dialogue between the civil society and politics.
