HispanicBusiness

Mexican athletes bringing back medals from the upcoming London 2012 Olympic Games will be rewarded with generous cash prizes, Mexico's National Sports Commission (Conade) said Thursday in a statement.

Conade detailed the amount of the prizes on offer, saying winning a gold medal in individual event would receive 500,000 Mexican pesos (about 37,000 U.S. dollars); silver medal, 250,000 pesos (18,000 U.S. dollars); and bronze medal, 125,000 pesos (10,000 U.S. dollars).

Winning a gold medal in team sports would be awarded three million pesos (about 223,000 U.S. dollars); silver medal, two million pesos (149,000 U.S. dollars); and bronze medal, one million pesos (74,500 U.S. dollars).

Conade Sports Quality Assistant Director Alejandro Cardenas said recently the organization estimated it would spend between 20 and 22 million pesos (about 1.6 million U.S. dollars) on winning athletes returning from the London Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Mexico's sports officials have shied away from giving an exact number of expected medals, but have said they expect about 20 of the country's 102-member delegation to make it into the top tiers in their respective sports.

At the Beijing Games in 2008, Mexico won only three medals, two gold in taekwondo and a bronze in synchronized diving.