FILE PHOTO: Athletics - Diamond League - Zurich - Sechselaeutenplatz square, Zurich, Switzerland - September 7, 2022 Australia's Nina Kennedy in action during the women's pole vault final REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann/File Photo
(Reuters) - Annual multi-sport event Diamond League will increase its prize money to more than $9 million in 2025, the highest in the history of the series, the organisers said on Wednesday.
Athletes will make a total of $18 million, with top athletes also receiving promotional fees. Male and female athletes will be paid at the same rate, the Diamond League said in a statement.
"The new total is almost a third higher than the sum paid during the pandemic-affected period of 2021-2024," the statement said, adding that more will be invested in the athletes' travel, transport, accommodation, medical and physio services.
Each of the 14 meets of the 2025 regular season, scheduled to kick off in April, will award a total prize money of $500,000, with the final in August offering $2.24 million.
"The total prize money per discipline will be between $30,000 and $50,000 at the series meetings and between $60,000 and $100,000 at the final," the statement added.
The Diamond League's 2024 season concluded in Brussels last week, with Zurich set to host the 2025 final.
(Reporting by Chiranjit Ojha in Bengaluru; Editing by Christian Radnedge)
