The board of the skiing association decided that representative athletes will pay a co-payment of up to 500 euros for each World Cup weekend in the starting season. The contribution applies to everyone.
After its catastrophic financial statements published last spring, the Hiihtoliitto ry, which established an economic crisis program, has taken many measures to turn the economic situation around for the better.
In the beginning of the World Cup season, the talks will also include top athletes, whose camp in the summer ended largely focused on their home country due to the Ski Federation’s savings program. Next season, the athletes selected by the Ski Federation for the World Cups will pay a deductible for each Cup weekend, which is a maximum of 500 euros.
– The matter is the decision of the board of directors. The amount is not necessarily 500 euros and under no circumstances greater than 500 euros. Securing the financial basis of international competition requires such a measure, the president of the Ski Federation elected in the spring Sirpa Korkatti told Urheilu on Tuesday.
The amount applies to all athletes selected for the cups. In the past, the skiing association has had various co-responsibility arrangements, from which usually the biggest superstars, who are separately supported by the Olympic Committee’s elite sports unit, have been exempted. Top sports activities are a necessary fundraising channel and core activity for the Ski Association, but the expenses it generates are also huge.
– The general trend is that the cost of organizing elite sports activities in all forms of sports is getting significantly higher all the time, says Korkatti.
The Ski Federation has not yet separately informed its athletes about the exact deductible arrangements. However, it is clear that the athletes are not happy to receive the additional expenses. The cost burden of the Cup weekends is increased by the fact that the Ski Federation pays for the athletes’ travel from and to Helsinki. Those coming from the province pay for their own trip to the capital region and from there back to their hometown.