Jonnie Peacock and David Weir: DL should pay paralympic athletes same as stars

The business of athletics attracts revenue through TV deals, sponsorship and ticketing, which enables the IAAF to share profits and incentivize the athletes to come and make some money. I don't really believe that paralympic athletes are adding to the revenue pull. I think the fact that the IAAF may give them a race is a great opportunity for paralympic athletes to showcase their stuff and perhaps they shouldn't get ahead of themselves. I think the test would be to run a paralympic diamond league ... would anyone pick up the TV rights, sponsorship, tickets? for how much?

Same thing goes for women sports wanting a slice of the revenue from big male sports e.g football, basketball, cricket etc. they want equality of pay, but aren't contributing with equality of revenue.

The spectators should also be paid as much as the athletes.

pets too.

pets should be paid as much as the athletes.

anyone else that i am missing?

khcglhc wrote:

How could we put pressure on the Diamond league to pay Masters (and para) the same as women (and men)?

Women have done a great job in demanding equality. Masters (and para) should pull together and do the same.

…or are they too whimpy (or not organized enough) to demand this change?

Stop the age wage gap! This discrimination must stop. Pay HS and Masters athletes the same as the pros now!

OozmaKappa wrote:

khcglhc wrote:

How could we put pressure on the Diamond league to pay Masters (and para) the same as women (and men)?

Women have done a great job in demanding equality. Masters (and para) should pull together and do the same.

…or are they too whimpy (or not organized enough) to demand this change?

Stop the age wage gap! This discrimination must stop. Pay HS and Masters athletes the same as the pros now!

I was watching the para games. The 1500m WR for T38 is faster than the women WR. Why should they not earn as much? I really do not understand.

Furthermore, why is there no para category at the NCAA. It seems very backward. Para should have the same opportunity. It is quite discriminatory.

Same for Master WR. The M40 1500m WR is faster than women WR. Actually, so is the M45 record. Of course, I understand why NCAA does not have a master category.

Ncaa should have a masters category!

20 Second PR wrote:

I mean, I get it. But we might as well say track athletes should get equal pay to soccer athletes. It's the same argument. The truth is that track events don't bring in a ton of money and para-events bring in even less.

Great point.

Today, David Weir joined him in calling for equal pay. His argument was this, “The prize money isn’t equal but we are fighting, we are telling them. We do 26.2 miles, you wouldn’t pay different to men and women – so why not us?"

That is a terrible argument. A paralympian can do a marathon on back to back days - they are doing that this fall as the Boston and Chicago majros are on back to back days.

Look. If GB wants to pay its Paralympians the same in terms of lottery funding, I'm fine with that. To be honest, I don't get why Mo Farah needs lottery funding. But prize money or endorsements? No freaking way.

If we are going to do that, then we need to pay all pro athletes regardless of sport and popularity or difficulty, the same.

khcglhc wrote:

OozmaKappa wrote:

As with all equal pay movements, this is idiotic because it ignores basic economics. Sorry, but that's just how it is and theres no use sugarcoating it.

Ship sailed long ago

If women in sports get equal pay, I don’t see why disabled athletes should also not get equal pay. Look at the Diamond league. Women are getting the same as men.

Sports is a business and its revenue is primarily from T.V. and ticket sales. If the Paralympian athletes were to receive as much money, it would have to be funded from an outside source.

Women athletes do generate income for sports. Sha'Carri and Allison Felix are just as popular as any of the male athletes. In tennis, Naomi Osaka might be the biggest draw right now.

rojo wrote:

,,,

If we are going to do that, then we need to pay all pro athletes regardless of sport and popularity or difficulty, the same.

We are already doing that. Williams said that women tennis is a different sport from men tennis

The intrinsic value of sport is the experience of the participants: fitness, teamwork, camaraderie, discipline. A few people earn enough money to make a living, and for most of them it is a modest living as a gym teacher.

Music is very similar. A very small fraction make big money, most pay more cash in than they get back, and most who make a living out of it make a modest one as music teachers.

The big money comes from entertainment value to spectators, and club owners conning communities into paying their profits from taxpayer money via bribing politicians with publicity and tokens like free tickets.

If I want to see people with disabilities do sport, I can coach them on the football pitch, starting this Tuesday evening.

SDSU Aztec wrote:

khcglhc wrote:

Ship sailed long ago

If women in sports get equal pay, I don’t see why disabled athletes should also not get equal pay. Look at the Diamond league. Women are getting the same as men.

Sports is a business and its revenue is primarily from T.V. and ticket sales. If the Paralympian athletes were to receive as much money, it would have to be funded from an outside source.

Women athletes do generate income for sports. Sha'Carri and Allison Felix are just as popular as any of the male athletes. In tennis, Naomi Osaka might be the biggest draw right now.

That's largely because the media gives them a platform to be popular. Why would that not happen with para-athletes or masters athletes etc? If there is a women's sub category being paid as much as the men then there is zero reason beyond prejudice why other sub-categories should be given as much media coverage and money as well.

If this was applied to lottery funding in the UK ,with the same pot to distribute, it would decimate funding to able bodied.

And half the para team would be knighted.

However going to be hard to resist in these woke times.

hard to say wrote:

Hobbling wrote:

He makes a good point where they're actively using the athletes to advertise the meet side by side with very well paid athletes...

Is he on the poster to sell tickets, or because the organisers are doing the PC thing out of fear if they don’t?

I would guess it’s more the latter, and ticket sales would be higher without him on the poster, and (dare I say it) without him at the meet!

I'm based in the UK and over the last 10 years, basically since the London Paralympics, there has been a lot of press coverage - at times more so than traditional athletics because of the medals. We love a medal.

Within the wider public - Peacock has probably as much name recognition as any male sprinter (possibly Gemili is similar) and Weir gets a huge amount of coverage for having so many London marathon wins (which get covered in detail every year).

It's not the case for most Paralympians but these two definitely sit on that third level - first level being Mo, second level being Muir, Asher-Smith etc.

The argument is based on parity of achievement and this will be a hard one to fight.

I should also get paid the same for running my local 5k

20 Second PR wrote:

I mean, I get it. But we might as well say track athletes should get equal pay to soccer athletes. It's the same argument. The truth is that track events don't bring in a ton of money and para-events bring in even less.

It's not the same argument - the Diamond League organizes world class track and field meets. It doesn't do soccer or HS meets or masters. It has no control over anything else other than what it organizes.

There's some confusion about what equal pay is. People aren't strictly paid on what they bring back in revenue - it's very hard to calculate that. It's about what's negotiated. If there's an observable difference between groups (racial, sex, etc) for what's the same work for the same business, that could lead to an accusation the business has discriminated in its negotiation strategy.

The argument here is that para athletes are doing the same work for the same business and should get an equal shot at the prize.

I think the above will become inevitable

How in the current PC climate can you argue to the contrary?

A para gold is equal to other golds.

We know it is not but ….

Can we get equal pay for hobbyjoggers too? Give me a break.

What's 'PC climate' got to do with it? Let's depoliticize it then.

Should the prize money for the 100m be different than the steeplechase? The DL doesn't recognize the two events are different in prestige. It would be strange for meet organizers marketing to sponsors to acknowledge some of its events are more competitive than others.

When the NFL sells broadcasting contracts it doesn't claim some of its games are better than others. Every one is a huge event in its own right (according to the NFL). It would be punching itself in the face of it admitted that isn't the case. It's the same for the DL and IAAF, if you're selling to sponsors using the whole package of able bodied and para sports, it doesn't really make sense not to distribute prize money equally.

And Masters with disability categories.

In fact, everyone should have their own category. Everyone is a winner!