International Federation of Gymnastics cancels World Cup prize money – No more Jackpots!
The International Federation of Gymnastics (FIG) recently made an announcement, terminating the short-lived tradition of the jackpot prize money presented to the number one World Cup champions.
Wolfgang Willam, FIG Executive Committee member, unveiled this disappointment at the Stuttgart World Cup press conference that took place this November.
According to Willam, the FIG and the organizers of the four World Cups have not decided how to finance the jackpot prize money.
The jackpot used to be awarded on the basis of a points system and incorporated results from all the Category A (II) World Cups held in a year.
In one calendar year, four such all-round tournaments are organized: the American World Cup (March), the Glasgow World Cup (April), the Stuttgart World Cup (November) and the Tokyo World Cup (also November).
The points’ calculation system, for the now abandoned jackpot, was simple.
All of the results from these competitions were converted into points through a conversion grid. The maximum number of points that could be awarded to a win was 50, logically assigned to the all-round champion.
Subsequently, five points were taken away with each step down in the positions, such that the second place received 45 points, the third place received 40 and so on.
The trackers selected each competing gymnasts’ top three points earned over the year. These totals were then compared to determine the top ranking male and female in the World Cup standings.
Top rankers were then awarded 50,000 U.S. dollars each. Understandably, this whole process took place towards the end of the year.
The news is especially bad for professional athletes who no longer have a chance to compete for the jackpot, and rely solely on the sport to earn their living.
Philipp Boy, the second ranked in World Cup standings (2010), was present at the press conference when Willam made the announcement. His immediate reaction was undisguised irritation.
"If this is so, then if the whole idea of the World Cup series did not work out," he said.
Indeed the jackpot was one of the major attractions of the World Cup series for the athletes. In fact, it was introduced in 2010 as an instrument for boosting the athletes’ waning interest in the series.
The last gymnast to have received the jackpot was Ukraine’s Mykola Kuksenkov. This year, Venezuela’s Jessica Lopez stood first up until the Stuttgart World Cup. However, Huang Qiushuang’s acceleration in Stuttgart, might just strip Lopez of the position.
Recently turned pro and currently tying in second place with Amelia Racea in World Cup rankings, is the American artistic gymnast Jordyn Wieber.
Fortunately, the series will still be giving out the usual prize money at each of these World Cups. So all is not lost and Stuttgart’s winners will walk away with a handsome amount of 15,000 Swiss francs.
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