"50k for a life-changing moment?"- Justin Gatlin expresses displeasure on World Athletics' decision to award prize money to Olympic Champions

Justin Gatlin recently reacted to The World Athletics Committee's decision to award $50,000 to Paris Olympic Champions.

World Athletics recently announced a total prize pool of $2.4 million to all those who would win medals at the Paris Olympics and later, the2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.

Justin Gatlin took to X to voice his opinion on the new development. The American felt that the prize money being announced for Olympic champions was not sufficient considering the viewership and impact that they brought into the games single-handedly.

"50k for a life changing moment? A moment that these Olympic athletes have dedicated their lives and sacrificed for. They can’t buy a car nor a house with 50k, it should be at least double the World Championships," he tweeted.

Justin Gatlin urged that the prize money being offered by the World Athletics Committee should be doubled.

Justin Gatlin on the growth of track and field

Justin Gatlin at the 2019 IAAF World Championships in Doha

Justin Gatlin has been in the track and field circuit for almost two decades. Over the years, the American witnessed all the changes that the sport went through, from the early 2000s to the Usain Bolt era.

In an interview with Firstpost, Gatlin opened up on how he thinks track and field could grow to greater heights. The American called for more investment into the characters of the athletes so that the audience would know more about them. He also said that there should be focus on the ones who showed potential.

"Invest more into the athletes’ characters. The average audience probably knows, two to three runners out of a race. You have five-six other runners that they probably don’t even know who it is," he said.

"If the audience already knows two to three athletes, highlight the ones who show true potential. Bear in mind, everyone loves an underdog. Everyone loves to say that ‘I was there in the beginning’. Those are one of the key elements to be able to make a sport grow and be loved and adored by the audience," Gatlin added.

Gatlin has had an illustrious track and field career, that saw him win five Olympic medals. The American won the 100m gold at the 2004 Olympics in Athens, where he also won bronze in the 200m event. He was also part of the team that won silver in the 4x100m event.

Gatlin won the 100m bronze in the 2012 London Olympics while winning silver in 2016.