Northern Ontario athletes, coaches, welcome new compensation for Paralympic medalists

A new plan to compensate Canadian Paralympic medalists is long overdue, according to some Paralympians and coaches from northern Ontario.

Starting with the Paris 2024 Games, Paralympians will receive $20,000 for winning gold, $15,000 for silver and $10,000 for bronze. That is equal to the amount Canadian Olympians receive.

"I think that's a huge step and the right direction for some equality within Paralympic and Olympic sports in our country," said Collin Cameron. a Para nordic skier and Paralympic medalist from Sudbury.

"We were kind of a little bit behind in that compared to a lot of other countries in the world as far as recognizing the achievements of Paralympic medalists."

Cameron said athletes don't get into Para sports for the money, but new incentives for medalists will be a big help to elite athletes who dedicate their lives to their sport.

"It's a pretty large amount of money, even for a bronze medal," Cameron said.

"I mean that kind of money helps relieve a lot of financial burden that athletes in high performance sports have. Just within, you know, nutrition needs, medical needs all the way down to basic bills that they have."

Cameron said the current financial climate has made it more difficult for Paralympians to land corporate sponsorship deals, so any extra source of income is a big help.

The Paralympic Foundation of Canada created an initial $8-million endowment to pay Canadian Paralympic medalists at future games.

Tom Hainey, a swimming coach and former Paralympic athlete from Atikokan, said he wasn't surprised when he heard medalists would now be compensated.

"This is something that's been talked about for a long time," he said.

Hainey said there's been a recent push for equality across all sports,