British sport could lose hundreds of elite athletes before the LA 2028 Olympics and Paralympics unless the Government increases funding for the next four-year cycle.
The stark warning comes after 85 per cent of funded athletes in a new survey said they would not or might not continue competing if forced to make do with current payments.
Grants have fallen far behind inflation and the average full-time athlete receives less than £22,500 a year, according to the British Elite Athletes Association (BEAA).
“Athletes and their families have shouldered the burden of static grants throughout the cost-of-living crisis,” a letter signed by 10 athletes and sent this week to Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy said.
“Now we are concerned that, with the sporting system under immense financial pressure, they will be asked to do so until at least 2028. Such a demand will have devastating consequences.
“The need for increased grants is borne out of concern – not just for the top level of British sport, but for the positive impact this sector has on our entire country. Fewer athletes means fewer medals, yes, but also fewer role models and fewer opportunities.”
In a BEAA survey carried out in the last month, only 15 per cent of almost 200 respondents said they could continue competing on their current funding. Almost two thirds said they would end their careers and 21 per cent said they were unsure.
Funding levels will be confirmed after next week’s Autumn Budget. Some athletes are believed to receive the same amounts as in 2012, despite inflation running at almost 40 per cent since, meaning even the best-funded are £11,000 worse off.
One athlete told the survey: “Many athletes, including me, are struggling… I cannot count the amount of ex-athlete friends who have gone into debt, lost so much and even a couple who have been homeless.”
Holly Pearne-Webb MBE, part of Team GB’s gold-winning hockey team at Rio 2016, chairs a forum of athletes which feeds into sporting policy and co-signed the letter to Nandy.
“Across sport I’ve seen athletes becoming increasingly reliant on their families to sustain their careers, or quit altogether because they can’t afford to continue,” she said.
“A lot held on until Paris, but many won’t be able to sustain themselves for another four years without higher grants, especially athletes from lower-income backgrounds.”
BEAA chair Dominic Mahony MBE said the body was “profoundly concerned about athlete funding between now and LA 2028”.
He added: “Athletes are hugely grateful for the support they receive, and none would wish to be seen as unappreciative.
“But the reality is many have been forced out of sport already as inflation has out-stripped grants for so long, and many more may soon quit under the strain of the cost of living crisis.”