Athletics governing body World Athletics will become the first international federation to award prize money at an Olympics starting at this summer's Paris Games, the body said on Wednesday.
Typically, Olympic athletes receive monetary, and sometimes non-monetary, rewards only from their countries for winning a place on the podium.
World Athletics will set aside $2.4 million from the International Olympic Committee's (IOC) revenue share allocation to reward athletes who win a gold medal in each of the 48 athletics events in Paris. Each Olympic champions is to receive $50,000.
The plan is to extend the prize money to Olympic silver and bronze medal winners at the 2028 Games in Los Angeles.
"The introduction of prize money for Olympic gold medallists is a pivotal moment for World Athletics and the sport of athletics as a whole, underscoring our commitment to empowering the athletes and recognising the critical role they play in the success of any Olympic Games," World Athletics president Sebastian Coe said.
"This is the continuation of a journey we started back in 2015, which sees all the money World Athletics receives from the International Olympic Committee for the Olympic Games go directly back into our sport," he added.