B_Doughtie wrote:
I think there is more top end money for top itu athletes for how the sport is structured. They can race one a month at every stop and its the same 10 guys making bank 90% of the time. There is more money prob in IM but that’s over like 75 events and those guys only race 1/2 of what the itu guys do.
Itu guys get hooked up on the federation’s dime while the IM guys have to get those private sponsors to cover costs etc.
I would say it’s more lucrative within triathlon to be an IM champion but if you can find an non tri product I’m guessing an “Olympic champion” is far more appealing to the masses. That to me is IM brand’s issue with sponsors for its races, it seems it’s all tri related companies these days.
I think it very much depends on where you are from as well, in terms of endorsements. In the UK you could be No 3 UK athlete and top 10 in the WTS and have no sponsors. This is known as the Brownlee effect and has happened in the past. Things may be changing with Yee emerging but you get the point.
As far as prize money is concerned there is no competition - ITU wins hands down not only at the top end but also with how far down the prize pool goes. I guess with 70.3 and IM the standard in some Pro fields is extremely poor in comparison to ITU but then the prize pool may be only 5 deep and is pretty pitiful in many races.
Another thing to consider is ITU athletes have Super League and French GP as extra income sources which are very very lucrative, and can be used as essentially paid training races, as has been done with French GP in the past.
As Brooks alluded to this is all done with minimal expenses as NGB is covering living expenses, training, medical etc etc. This I think is where the big difference lies with MOP pros.