Singapore’s Paralympians should be awarded the same recognition and rewards for their successes as the country’s Olympians, said gender advocacy group AWARE on Saturday (4 Sep).
In a joint statement with the Disabled People’s Association (DPA) Singapore, AWARE congratulated Paralympic swimmer Yip Pin Xiu for winning two gold medals in the 50m and 100m backstroke swimming events at the Tokyo Paralympics recently.
They also commended the other Singapore Paralympians for representing the country at a high level.
The statement stressed that their hard work and achievements are “no less remarkable” than that of the nation’s Olympians such as Joseph Schooling and Feng Tianwei.
“However, for a gold medal, Singaporean Paralympians are rewarded $200,000 – 20% of the $1 million that Schooling received in 2016,” said AWARE.
Schooling won gold in 2016, while Feng won two bronze medals in the 2012 games and a silver in 2008.
Back in 2016, the Singapore National Olympic Council responded to the DPA’s queries on the variance in cash rewards, explaining that it is because the prize money comes from different donor-funded schemes and due to better donor awareness of the Olympics over the Paralympics, AWARE noted.
The reward for Olympians comes from the Major Games Awards Programme, previously named The Multi-Million Dollar Award Programme, while the reward for Paralympians is derived from the Athletes’ Achievement Award.
AWARE went on to say that while Ms Yip has consistently made Singapore proud with her achievements, she also had to overcome many challenges along the way that other female Paralympians around the world face as well.
“Women with disabilities face double discrimination on the basis of their gender and disability,” said the gender advocacy group.
“It is reported that up to 93% of women with disabilities do not participate in sport. Therefore, it is unsurprising that women only make up one-third of athletes with disabilities involved in international competitions, such as the Paralympics.”
The statement went on to highlight other countries that have made efforts to bridge this gap over the years, such as Malaysia awarding the same amount for both Paralympic and Olympic medallists since 2016.
Also, Tokyo 2020 is the first time that the United States (US) is awarding their Paralympic gold medallist the same cash prize amount as its Olympic counterpart, said AWARE.
Most recently, the Australian government announced that Paralympic Australia would receive additional funding so that the country’s Paralympic medallists would receive the same prize money as their Olympic counterparts.
“As we build an inclusive society, we should agree on the objective that our Paralympians be afforded the same recognition as our Olympians, and how we honour them should reflect that,” said AWARE.
It then called on relevant stakeholders, including the primary donor of the respective reward funds, Tote Board, to “come together with interested organisations to work on a road map to this shared goal”.
“In particular, it could explore whether combining the two award schemes would help get us closer to parity in how we reward our elite athletes,” the group concluded.
