MINISTER of Sport and Community Development Shamfa Cudjoe has announced the expansion of the National Incentives and Rewards Framework.

In 2018, the National Rewards and Incentives Framework was introduced to reward athletes who achieved medals at the highest levels of international competition in various respective sporting disciplines.

Athletes have benefited from this policy for medalling at the Olympics/Paralympics Games, T20 World Cups, World Track and Field Championships, Central American and Caribbean Games, Special Olympic World Games among others.

A Ministry of Sport and Community Development media release on Friday, said, “On July 7, 2022 the Cabinet took the decision to expand the incentives framework to include the World Athletics Indoor Championships.”

Cudjoe said that Jereem Richards will be the first TT athlete to receive an incentive in this new category in recognition of his gold medal performance, which set a new championship record in the men’s 400m event at the 2022 World Athletics Indoor Championships held in Belgrade, Serbia. To date, over $5.5 million has been distributed to 100 athletes by the Government since the inception of the programme in 2018.