Rio de Janeiro: The Indian Olympic Association yesterday announced a Rs 50 lakh cash award for the gold medal winning athletes in the Rio Olympics.

At a meeting with the managers and coaches of the teams, the IOA top brass comprising president N Ramachandran and secretary general Rajeev Mehta, it was announced that the national Olympic body for the first time would award Rs 50 lakh for a gold medal, R30 lakh for silver and R20 lakh for bronze.