Australian Sport Foundation survey finds financial and mental health pressures are leading elite ath
0#sport #australia #athletes #elite
Nearly half of Australia's top athletes earn below the poverty line and have annual incomes of less than $23,000. Highlights Close half of elite athletes seeking to be selected for the Commonwealth or Olympic Games are considering quitting, according a new survey Nearly half of elite athletes seeking to qualify for a Commonwealth or Olympic Games are considering quitting, according to a new study.took one year A study by Australian Sports Foundation 2,300 Australian athletes, of whom about 600 are at the elite level, found that almost half elite earn less than $23,000 a year.Few athletes received fundraising or financial support from sports organizations This is finding that Australian Sports Foundation warns that if financial support is not provided country risks leaving country ahead of major international events. Two out of three elite Australian athletes aged 18 to 34 are considering quitting the sport, according to a survey by the foundation. One two athletes aiming to participate in 2026 Commonwealth Games, 43 percent of those who attended the 2032 Olympic Games Brisbane also considered quitting sport. The foundation found that more 40 percent of them were financially worse off than they were a year ago, and more one in four had experienced a mental health deterioration in the previous 12 months. "This is a green and gold decade for us with a lot of events to look forward to, but without the athletes they are nothing," said Patrick Walker, the foundation's managing director. Elite adult athletes surveyed earned an average of $23,000 to $49,000 annually. However, the foundation found that 46 percent of them earn less than $23,000 per year from the sum of all their income streams. The biggest challenges were costs and financial insecurity;elite athletes spent more each year on travel and accommodation for competitions than on food. Mr Walker said very few people receive financial support through fundraising or a sports organization. Olympic athlete Bronte Campbell said injuries were the biggest cost she inflicted during her career. Champion swimmer Bronte Campbell said the biggest cost she inflicted during her career related to injuries, and while injury support was excellent when it available, costs soon began to outweigh the support she received. Athletes have to contend with unique financial pressures as well as pressures that affect wider society, including rent and mortgage prices, she said. "If you win gold medal at the Olympics you get a medal jackpot, which is not million dollars as someone once asked me," Campbell said. But you're trying to support yourself between the Olympics and when you're performing high. "There have been years where I absolutely didn't know how to run it if I hadn't had success last year." Mr Walker urged Australians to consider making donations to local athletes and sports clubs, given that government funding alone is not enough. It also encouraged athletes to seek other sources of income. The foundation's fi