Record breakers and winners in Budapest to get huge perks

Over 2,000 athletes from around 200 countries-including Kenya are set to benefit from the world record programme during this month's World Athletics Championships in Budapest.

During the nine-day global extravaganza, World Athletics will once again run its world record programme that rewards record breakers.

Athletes who will set a world record will be eligible for a special award of US$100,000 offered by TDK and World Athletics’ new Inside Track platform.

The performance must be an improvement on the existing World Athletics world record. Performances that equal the existing world record will not be eligible for a world record award.

During last year's World Athletics Championships in Oregon, Eugene, USA’s Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone and Sweden’s Mondo Duplantis were rewarded for their performances.

McLaughlin-Levrone clocked 50.68 setting a new 400m hurdles world record bettering her previous time of 51.41.

Duplantis took the pole vault to another level again by clearing the 6.21m mark also bettering his previous jump of 6.20 set during the World Athletics Indoor Championships in Serbia in March.

The Japanese electronics company TDK will offer the awards for men's events while the women’s world record programme will be supported by Inside Track.

For the mixed 4x400m relay, the programme will be supported by both TDK and Inside Track. Aside from the world record programme, a total of US$8,498,000 in prize money will be on offer in Budapest.

Individual winners will get  US$70,000, US$35,000 for second-placed and  US$22,000 for bronze. Positions four to eight will receive between  US$16,000 and US$5000.

Relays winners will get US$80,000 with second and third placed receiving US$40,000 and US$20,000 respectively. Positions four to eight will get between US$16,000 and US$4000.

posted Thursday August 10th
by Samuel Nganga