India, June 26 -- Skiers Arif Mohammad Khan and Stanzin Lundup will be the first Indian beneficiaries of the International Olympic Committee's $10,000 grant for Olympians as they had represented the country at this year's Milano-Cortina Winter Games, which would be the starting point for the programme's roll-out.

The grant marks a major shift from over a century-old IOC principle of not handing out financial benefits to athletes due to the concept of amateurism enshrined in the Olympic movement.

It is a part of IOC's "Fit for the Future" strategic framework to find "new and complementary ways" to provide support to athletes, who qualify for the Games and steer clear of any doping offences.

IOC President Kirsty Coventry has refused to c...