P10M awaits Pinoy Olympic gold medalist

MANILA, Philippines – A P10-million cash award awaits any Filipino athlete who wins a gold medal in the Olympics.

The incentive is contained in Republic Act No. 10699, which President Aquino signed last week, Davao City Rep. Karlo Nograles said yesterday.

He said the new law amended Republic Act No. 9064, known as the Sports Benefits and Incentives Act of 2001.

He said the new legislation, which doubles cash awards contained in RA 9064, “will definitely reinvigorate the country’s dying sports sector and give rise to a new breed of world-class Filipino athletes.”

“One reason why the country still lacks world-class talents in various sports disciplines is because of the notion that there is no money and there is no future for athletes,” he stressed.

“Many talents go to waste because they pursue other professions. This is due to the notion that they would only get hungry if they get into sports as their profession,” he added.

The old law provided a cash award of P5 million for a Filipino Olympics gold medal winner.

Rep. Anthony del Rosario of Davao del Norte is the principal author of the amendatory bill. The committee on youth and sports development chaired by Rep. Wes Gatchalian of party-list group Alay Buhay endorsed the measure.

“Representing the country in sports competitions is a tall order and due recognition should be extended to our hardworking athletes for the honor and sacrifice that they bring to the country,” Gatchalian said.

“Just like our overseas workers, our national athletes are our modern-day heroes who bring pride and glory to the nation. Our athletes and coaches will now be entitled to significant awards after winning international competitions,” he said.

He said the incentives are intended “to encourage and further motivate them in doing their best.”

He added that under the new law, national athletes recognized and accredited by the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) and the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC), who win gold, silver, and bronze medals in international sports competitions will be entitled to the following cash awards.

Under the new law, gold medalists in the Youth and Paralympics Games and Asian Games will be given P5 million and P2 million, respectively.

Silver medalists will receive P5 million for the Summer and Winter Olympic Games, P2.5 million for the Youth and Paralympic Games, and P1 million for the Asian Games.

Bronze medalists will get P2 million for Summer and Winter Olympic Games, P1 million for the Youth and Paralympic Games and P400,000 for Asian Games.

For team events with five or more participants, each team member will get 25 percent of the cash incentives provided for the individual medal winners.

The incentive for coaches will be equivalent to half of the cash awards of the athletes they trained.