How much was the budget allocated to sports in Mexico between 2020 and 2021, according to López Obrador

As part of the Third Government Report, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador did not leave aside the sports category and pointed out that the budget that was destined for the athletes was 500 million pesos.

Likewise, he made it clear that a total of 925 athletes were distributed in a single exhibition and without the help of intermediaries as was done before through Fodepar, which was recently eliminated to avoid possible acts of corruption in the delivery of support.

"Now 925 high-performance athletes and coaches have received direct support for their preparation for a global amount of 500 million pesos ", he pointed out.

According to the information he provided, it is estimated that the amount received by each athlete was 540 thousand pesos . In this sense, the president reiterated that he will continue to support the Paralympic delegation that is representing Mexico in Tokyo.

“In the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, Mexican athletes competed with professionalism and dignity, obtaining four bronze medals, those who participate in the Paralympic Games are a national pride. They have so far achieved five Gold, one Silver and eight Bronze medals,” he added.

"In this month when they return, they and all of the Mexican delegation will be given, including their coaches, economic incentives, " he concluded.

It should be remembered that the Government of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador proposed to reduce the budget for sports in 2021, compared to 2020. This despite the fact that the two most important sports fairs were held after the postponement due to COVID-19, the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

The Executive branch presented the expenditure budget project to the Chamber of Deputies and the Ministry of Finance and Public Credit (SHCP) proposed that the Sports Attention Program receive 2,675 million pesos. “Raising the competitive level of high-performance athletes will be promoted from their initiation and development through the High-Performance Centers,” the document indicates.

However, this budget was less than the one approved by the Chamber of Deputies a year earlier. The legislators agreed that sports in Mexico would receive 2,783 million pesos for 2020, which meant an increase compared to 2019 (1,718 million).

The budget for the Sports Attention Program for this Olympic year also decreased. In 2020, this program received 674 million pesos, which had also been an increase compared to 2019.

On the other hand, the Mexican government also grants an economic prize to the athletes who won a medal in the Olympic Games. However, the president assured that he will consider the Mexican athletes who have obtained fourth place in the competitions of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games to give them extra encouragement.

In the morning conference that he offered from Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, he stated that they would provide support: “We are going to consider the fourth places that have done an exceptional job, those that have occupied fourth place, which are several, especially in gymnastics that It is something unprecedented, never seen in the history of professional sports”.

It should be remembered that Alexa Moreno became the second Mexican to reach a final in the horse jumping specialty, reaching the best result in the history of the Mexican delegation in gymnastics when she obtained fourth place. The first athlete to reach the finals was Denisse López in Sidney 2000 , and she finished in seventh position

KEEP READING: