U.S. Olympic hurdler Lolo Jones received heavy criticism from several members of the US Olympic Bobsled team after tweeting a vine video showing her ranting about her three-figure bobsledding paycheck.
The 30-year-old Jones was apparently poking fun at her paycheck worth $741.81, which he earned after seven months of training with the U.S. Bobsledding team.
"Seven months with bobsled season. The whole season. That's it," Jones says in the video. "I'm going to be a little late on my rent this month."
According to ESPN, Jones' vine video reportedly rankled several members of the U.S. Bobsledding team, including the most accomplished American Bobsledder of all time, Steven Holcomb.
"It wasn't taken very well," Holcomb told USA Today of Jones' video. "People were really kind of insulted. You just made $741, more than most athletes in the sport. So what are you complaining about?"
Jones, who's actually raking up a lot of money from her numerous track and field endorsements, said she's just trying to inform everybody that bobsledding isn't a sport for one who wants to live a lucrative lifestyle.
"I can't imagine halfway through my track season having to stop and raise money to finish. The vine of the paycheck is just showing the difference between track and bobsled, and to be honest bobsledders work more hours than track!" Jones released a statement via ESPN.
The track star said he hopes the vine video of his paycheck could pave way for a change in a sport that has been deprived of proper funding from the government.
"The bottom line is that all Olympic athletes dedicate their lives to their sports and do not receive lucrative paychecks like athletes in mainstream professional sports. So hopefully this will make people appreciate just how hard Olympians work, often just for the love of the sport," added Jones, who gained support from her bobsled teammate Elana Meyers.
"@lolojones thanks for brining the issues to light! Bobsledders aren't high paid pro athletes like you see on tv ," Meyers tweeted.
Jones joined the Bobsledding team last year with the hope of winning an Olympic medal after failing to do so in the past two Summer Olympic Games.
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