Final Report

Athens 2004 – Team Sports Support Grants
Support rewarded with 28 teams qualifying
Following the Sydney Games and at the request of the NOCs, the Olympic Solidarity
Commission approved the creation of a subsidy programme for team sports, with the
aim of enabling NOCs to help teams qualify for the Olympic Games. This financial
assistance covered the cost of training camps, participation in competitions and coaching
fees for teams designated by their NOC.
The Athens 2004 team sports support grants programme was designed to help already
established national teams that did not have sufficient resources to pay for their Olympic
preparation. Olympic Solidarity worked closely with the IFs, which were consulted about
each application received as part of the evaluation of the technical content and the standard
of the team. Their expertise was a key element in the process of allocating the
grants and helped to maximise the rate of qualification for the Games. The first so-called
“qualification” phase was operational from the beginning of the quadrennial until the
final qualification competitions for the Games. Most of these competitions were held in
2003, when numerous teams received assistance from Olympic Solidarity to help them
qualify for the Games in Athens. The second “preparation” phase involved only the
teams that had qualified for the Games, which received an additional grant to help them
with their own Olympic preparations. A total of 59 grants were awarded during the two
phases.
This programme was regularly monitored during the Games and the results of the 28 teams
that qualified indicated some excellent performances. The teams concerned won
six medals: two gold, two silver and two bronze. However, it should be noted that the money
received by these teams often formed part of a general overall budget in countries which
already had certain funds in place, while for some NOCs it represented their main source
of income.
It is difficult to ensure the balanced representation of all the continents in the Olympic Games,
especially in team sports. However, this programme enabled some teams to qualify and
others to perform better in Athens. The participating NOCs’ satisfaction with this
programme proves that it was a success, although the technical requirements of the
Olympic Games qualification systems were an obstacle for many NOCs. The aim for the
2005–2008 quadrennial plan will be to open up this programme to cover preparation for
lower level competitions so that a larger number of NOCs can benefit.
World Programmes
Athletes
The Russian basketball
team celebrating their win
over Brazil at the Games
of the XXVIII Olympiad
in Athens
© Getty Images/Jamie Squire
2001–2004 expenditure
US$ 5,400,000