Stunning prize gap of the ski jumping World Cup revealed by the former winner of the event.
According to CNN, the organisers of the December 2024 ski world cup presented the male top qualifier of the event a cash prize of 3,000 Swiss francs ($3,290), while the female winner Selina Freitag received towels and shampoo.
Freitag told German TV channel BR24 after finishing at the top position at the Two Nights Tournament in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, “I received a partner bag with shower gel and shampoo and four hand towels. We unfortunately didn’t have a spare five hundred (euros) or so.”
Meanwhile, the skiing's governing body, FIS, told CNN that they did not award female winners cash prizes, but their gifts included a voucher for a weekend of wellness treatments and “were certainly well intentioned, but it is understandable that it may have generated frustration and given a bad impression if seen as formal compensation for the victory. This was not the case.”
FIS also argued that women's ski jumping is a newer sport and has fewer audiences and sponsors, resulting in less prize money available for women competitors.
Moreover, the winner of the tournament, Slovenia’s Nika Prevc, collected 4,300 Swiss francs ($4,700) in prize money, and the male winner, Austria’s Daniel Tschofenig, won 13,000 Swiss francs ($14,240).
