Two-time Olympic gold medallist, Jade Jones is considering a big-money move to mixed martial arts- after 2020 Olympic, which is to be held in Tokyo, Japan.
Jones, 23, is currently aiming to become the first taekwondo athlete to win three consecutive gold medals in Olympic games. She recently defended her crown at Rio 2016. Furthermore, she is set to compete in the World Taekwondo Grand Prix finals in Baku this Saturday.
I'm not going to lie; it's tempting to think 'what else is out there' and in MMA people earn millions. Taekwondo is an Olympic sport, so it's hard to get sponsors and hard to make money, but I just love it.
The Welsh native has accurately stated the funding issues that the Olympic athletes are facing. Apart from the top Olympians, the other athletes barely make a living for themselves.
The notion also applies to independent competitions as well.
The winner of each weight class in this week’s World Taekwondo Grand Prix in Azerbaijan will make just under £5000 from the elite competition. However, the earnings from appearance fees and ticket sales suggest, the potential prize fund should be more than double.
Jade Jones is anticipated to follow the footsteps of another Olympian who made a successful transition to MMA in Ronda Rousey. Rousey won an Olympic bronze in judo at Beijing 2008.
Maybe into the future I'll go to MMA, but for now, no-one in the sport has ever got three Olympic gold medals, so I have to continue to get that
The World Taekwondo Grand Prix will be Jone's first competition since winning the gold medal in Rio 2016. Although the multiple time champion claims, she is not in peak form, Jones would still be aiming to maintain her unbeaten run of 2016.
I'm not in peak shape after taking a break following the Olympics, but I love a scrap and it would be amazing to finish the year off with another title.
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