The International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced an increase in the Olympic Solidarity fund’s budget for the remainder of the 2021-2024 Olympic cycle.
The Olympic Solidarity fund is designed to support National Olympic Committees, helping fund athlete development in Olympic sports. Olympic Solidarity helps fund the 206 National Olympic Committees
The IOC’s Executive Board agreed to the budget increase this week. The overall budget will increase by 16%, moving up to $590 million in U.S. Dollars for the period from 2021 to 2024. The new budget will also increase funding to “direct athlete support programs” by 25%, according to the IOC’s press release.
“At 25 per cent, the increase in the funding of direct athlete support programmes is even higher than the overall increase,” said IOC President Thomas Bach in the organization’s press release. “Additionally, the athletes as members of the Olympic teams will benefit from the 25 per cent increase for NOCs. The IOC continues to help all NOCs, particularly those with the greatest needs and the IOC Refugee Olympic Team, through a wide range of programmes prioritising athletes’ development, and the training and education of their entourage.”
The increase comes after the IOC already increased Olympic Solidarity funding for the year 2020 amid the coronavirus pandemic. The IOC increased the Olympic Solidarity budget from $46.7 million to $57 million as of April.
