Kerala gives Asian Games athletes Rs 1 lakh upfront, Rs 50 lakh for gold

Kerala has announced a major cash incentive for its athletes competing at the Asian Games, with gold medallists set to receive Rs 50 lakh.

Sports Minister O J Janeesh announced the rewards at a function in Thiruvananthapuram on Tuesday. Athletes winning silver medals will receive Rs 30 lakh, while bronze medallists will be awarded Rs 20 lakh.

The state will also provide incentives to the coaches of medal-winning athletes. Coaches of gold medallists will receive Rs 5 lakh, while those guiding silver and bronze medallists will get Rs 3 lakh and Rs 2 lakh respectively.

In addition, every athlete from Kerala participating in the Asian Games will receive Rs 1 lakh in advance.

Janeesh said the decision was aimed at ensuring that the athletes knew about the incentives before the competition, pointing out that cash rewards for sporting achievements had faced delays in the past.

The announcement comes amid a broader effort by the government to overhaul the state's approach to athlete rewards. In August, the government acknowledged that prize money for athletes who had won medals at national and international competitions since 2019 remained pending. It said Rs 1.5 crore had been sanctioned as an initial step towards clearing the arrears, with the remaining payments to follow.

The government has also increased rewards after concluding that the existing amounts were inadequate. Under the earlier norms, international gold, silver and bronze medallists were eligible for Rs 5 lakh, Rs 3 lakh and Rs 1 lakh respectively.

The shift has already been visible in recent awards. Commonwealth Games silver medallists Murali Sreeshankar and Mohammed Basil were awarded Rs 20 lakh each in August, while other athletes and coaches were also recognised.

Kerala's Directorate of Sports and Youth Affairs says its financial assistance scheme has disbursed Rs 49 crore between 2020 and 2024, with nearly Rs 7 crore distributed in 2025.

The latest Asian Games announcement, therefore, represents not just a medal incentive, but another step in the state's stated effort to make its sports system more athlete-friendly.