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Joe Rogan Gets Support From UFC Insider After Criticizing IOC for Not Paying Olympic Athletes
Joe Rogan got backing from UFC insider after he criticized the International Olympic Committee for not paying Olympic athletes. Read on to know more.
Joe Rogan thinks that the International Olympic Committee (IOC) is at fault for not paying the Olympic athletes adequately. Well, he has got back up as UFC Insider, Chael Sonnen, too, has supported the claims. In a recent episode of Joe Rogan’s podcast, the UFC color commentator reflected on the underpayment of Olympic athletes. Providing his two cents on the matter, Rogan opined that the IOC is running a big ‘scam’ by not paying the athletes in Paris.
For the uninitiated, the athletes participating in the Paris Olympics(or any Olympics for that matter), do not get paid. Of course, their food and lodging are being taken care of by the IOC. But in terms of financial rewards, only the podium finishers are allocated a token amount. This amount is further divided among the staff of the athletes, which makes it hard for even the winners to sustain their costs with the given amount.
Doubling down on what Joe Rogan had said, Chael Sonnen too, seemed quite agitated with the IOC. The IOC generates a substantial amount of revenues through broadcasting and marketing rights. To give some context, according to Olympics.com, the IOC generated a whopping $7.6billion from the period between 2017 to 2021. Add to that the funding that the organization receives for looking after the overall development and wellbeing of the sport.
Thus, picking up on the issue, Chael Sonnen had a scathing remark about the underpayment issue. Speaking on his YouTube channel, Sonnen said, “There is not a lot of other things where you could get people on TV, make them your show, and not compensate them. So, it's a rather fascinating position but the greatest trick that the Olympic committee ever did is convincing the athletes they should not be paid.”
As a matter of fact, the issue with the athletes’ pay has been a lingering issue over the years. In a recent list of the Sportico’s richest athletes, Simone Biles was found to be performing without a salary! Although she ranked quite higher in the list, 100% of her earnings came from her endorsements and sponsorships.
Coming into the Paris Olympics, the World Athletics have promised the gold medal winners a sum of $50,000. While this might not be a big amount, World Athletics head, Sebastian Coe has expressed desires of expanding the reward program. Thus, with the IOC ravaged by so many controversies this year, the addition of athletes’ pay will surely be giving significant headaches to the who’s who of the International Olympic Committee.
ALSO READ: Is 2024 Paris Olympics Really the Lowest Rated Games in Modern History? Exploring Viral Rumor
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