Lithuanian state and sport officials say the Sydney Olympics might be a time of glory for the country's athletes.

On Aug. 16 Prime Minister Andrius Kubilius met with sportsmen that will participate in Sydney Olympics. Kubilius gave them good news: Olympic medal winners will get huge bonuses, up to $100,000 for the gold. Lithuanian bonuses for Olympic victories will be one of the highest in Europe, said Rimas Kurtinaitis, director of the Lithuanian Department of Physical Training and Sports. The Lithuanian government ruled on Aug. 16 that athletes who win a gold medal will receive 400,000 litas ($100,000) each, silver medal winners will get 200,000 litas and bronze medal winners,150,000 litas. The winners of fourth through eighth places will also get a piece of the pie. The fourth place winner will get 80,000 litas while eighth place could get up to 20,000 litas. By comparison, the Lithuanian media reports that Taiwan will give $320,000 for an Olympic gold medal, Latvia will give $200,000, China - $115,000, Russia - $100,000, Japan - $96,000, Estonia – almost $62,000, Germany - only $7,000. Lithuanian women cyclists are among the strongest in the world. Olympic Committee officials said they expect Lithuanian women cyclists to bring some Olympic medals from Sydney. There are reasons for such high hopes. Diana Ziliute won "Tour de France," the most prestigious women's cyclist competition, in 1999. Another Lithuanian, Edita Pucinskaite, won the same competition in 1998. Lithuania will send a total of 62 athletes to the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games. Disc thrower Romas Ubartas, gold medal winner in the Barcelona Olympics, will carry the Lithuanian tri-color in the opening ceremony in Sydney on Sept. 15.