Greece’s Olympic hopefuls will be forced to rely on handouts from the International Olympic Committee. This results in state cutbacks in funding for their London 2012 preparations.
Just six years after hosting the Olympic Games, the Greek government has decided to halt funding for the country’s elite athletes preparing to compete in London.
The decision, which follows the austerity measures put in place to deal with the Greek economic crisis, has forced the Hellenic Olympic Committee to seek aid from the IOC’s Olympic solidarity program.
“We had an agreement with the government for funding totalling 30 million euros over four years,” HOC president Spyros Kapralos told Reuters.
“But, after receiving 8 million euros in 2009, we have received zero this year due to financial difficulties, and what I would characterise as indifference for elite sport from the state…This is not only extremely disappointing and frustrating but it creates huge problems for both the athletes and HOC.”
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