Olympians Prepare For The Financial And Career Impact Of The 2020 Olympic Postponement

Olympians brace themselves for the reality of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics postponement. There’s a chance they may not qualify to participate on the national team for the 2021 Games. For some sports, such as the U.S. Water Polo team, they were preparing for the upcoming Qualifying Tournaments taking place over the next couple of months. For others, such as the U.S. Women’s Rugby team, they already secured their teams’ rosters.

“This postponement could affect my chances of playing in the games,” states Naya Tapper, USA Women’s Rugby and All-Time Leading Try Scorer for USA Women’s Eagles, “but I just have to focus on controlling what I can control. I will have to try out again to maintain my position on the team, but I’m always up for a challenge, and I believe that if I continue pushing myself to my full potential, I will come out of all this an Olympian.”

These elite athletes are now preparing for an elevated competition both mentally and physically. Mentally, they have to maintain a positive attitude and laser focus. Physically, they have to adjust to an at-home training routine. “I’ve actually been doing okay,” states Kaleigh Gilchrist, a 2016 Olympic Water Polo gold medalist . “I accepted that the postponement was going to happen for a while so that has allowed me to process it slowly. Of course, I am sad, but understanding that this pandemic is so much bigger than sport has helped me see beyond the Olympics.”

At 27-years old, Gilchrist is a two-sport professional athlete in water polo and surfing. She represented Team USA in Rio, winning an Olympic Gold Medal in water polo and is now splitting her time on the World Surf League Qualifying Surf Series and in the pool with Team USA. She was among the athletes training for the qualifying tournaments. As a team, water polo qualified to compete in the Games. However, 17 athletes are competing for 13 spots. In water polo, the team announces its roster two-to-three months prior to the start of the Games.

“Athletics always keeps you on your toes, and most of the time in our sport, the ones who are successful are the ones you can adapt the quickest with the best attitude,” Gilchrist smiles. “I was seriously injured in South Korea last July when we were celebrating our World Championship victory. Weirdly, that situation has prepared me the most for what is happening right now. I almost had the Olympics taken away from me then and dealt with very similar emotions. It taught me that nothing is guaranteed in life. The Olympics are still not guaranteed for me or any other teammate because we are still fighting for spots on the roster.”

Although Gilchrist is remaining steadfast mentally and athletically, she now has to take into consideration another year of fundraising to continue training. Most Olympians don’t receive a paycheck for competing in the Olympics. A-list athletes can earn over $10 million in endorsement deals. For many of the other athletes, it’s up to them to secure funds that cover their training and travel, which sometimes includes small stipends from the USOPC (United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee). “USA Water Polo has budgeted accordingly to the original schedule,” she shares, “but they are doing their best to adapt to the next schedule.” Additionally, the IOC provides medal bonuses. As of 2018, reported by CNBC, for athletes that make it to the podium, they can earn $37,500 for receiving a gold medal, $22,500 for silver and $15,000 for bronze. Also, many athletes have forfeited extra streams of income due to speaking engagements and event appearances being canceled.

Now, with having an extra year to train for the Games doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a positive experience even for teams like U.S. Women’s Rugby who is able to provide funding for their athletes. For the rugby players, they are starting over again in terms of securing a spot on the national team for the 2021 Games. Athletes who didn’t qualify this year have the opportunity for a redo. “There is always a position to fight for on the National Rugby team,” states Nicole Heavirland, U.S. Women’s Rugby player who secured a spot on the 2020 national team. “Every tournament, there is a tryout and a team of 12 out of 24 girls are selected to represent the country. My motivation has always been to beat Nicole Heavirland each day. I believe if I have this mentality in life, I will be successful no matter what I do. Nothing will change this year in terms of motivation because I’ve already laid the foundation, and I will continue to build.”

It’s too early to tell what the economic impact of postponing the Games will have. It has been reported that to stage the Games has cost upward of $28 billion. As for the roughly 11,000 Olympians from 200 countries, it’s up to them how they will mentally and athletically handle this setback.

“Being a rugby player specifically,” Tapper concludes, “I’m used to getting pushed down and having to get back up. I’m used to getting beat up and having to overcome the pain for a greater good. This is just a small hill I have to get over. Our team has been working on being adaptable when things change fast. Without even knowing it, our staff prepared us for this moment.”



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