More bad news for UK athletics
This week, the UK government agency responsible for investing in Olympic and Paralympic sports revealed that £330m ($418m/€400m) of funding will be invested in more than 50 sports ahead of the Los Angeles Games. The official statement says:
“This investment strengthens UK Sport’s mission to create the greatest decade of extraordinary sporting moments, reaching, inspiring and uniting the nation.” As part of the process, UK Sport spent a year planning with the sport to “understand their performance strategies and ambitions for Los Angeles and any specific financial needs in relation to the expected changes in the sport”.
Athletic will receive 20.45 million pounds ($26 million), which is a significant amount but almost 2 million pounds less than Paris. UKA CEO Jack Buckner commented: “The Lottery funding has been transformational for British sport. UK Athletics is incredibly grateful to the British public and the National Lottery for supporting the preparation of our athletes for the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Given the many challenges we face today, this country’s continued support for sport creates opportunities and magical moments that inspire the nation. We recognize this responsibility and will continue work hard to make it happen in the coming years.
“Over the past few years we have rebuilt athletics in the UK with our many partners and we are very grateful to you all. We must thank the athletes, UKA staff, coaches, volunteers, clubs and home countries who are the backbone of our great sport – Olympic and the most inclusive, dynamic and democratic in the Paralympic movement.
“We would like to thank UK Sport for their increased investment in our world-class Paralympic programme. The para-athletics environment continues to grow and become more competitive as more countries invest in para-sport. This growth will help ensure that GB & NI para athletes continue to receive support for world medals during the next round.
“At the same time, we are disappointed that we did not get the solution we had hoped for from British sport for the Olympic programme. We have felt the progress we have made over the last few years, culminating in 10 medals at both the World Championships and the Olympics. in games, not to mention wholesale improvements to governance, and our events and business model deserved a higher level of investment.Unfortunately, UK Sport cannot be convinced of our case at this time in
“While our budget will be tighter over the next four years, we will continue to build momentum and find ways to support athletes to reach their potential at major championships. We can assure our many great athletes, coaches and volunteers of our absolute commitment to supporting your aspirations: to succeed in our sport.”
Figures from LA 2028 Investment Funding Awards overview UK SPORTS
