CALGARY — It’s not just Olympians who are bringing home the gold. WestJet has announced that it will be dishing out gold status in its WestJet Reward program to frequent flyers, regardless of which airline or travel rewards program they belong to.

This represents the third time WestJet has offered the matching program to frequent Canadian flyers and the first time its has offered status match to all airline and travel rewards top-tier program members.

Gold flight benefits will be awarded to those who sign up to become a WestJet Rewards member, provide proof of top-tier status prior to Sept. 23, 2016, and take a WestJet-marketed flight between now and Oct. 31, 2016.

Gold flight benefits for eligible WestJet Rewards members include two free checked bags, 10 airport lounge vouchers, four advance seat selection vouchers, no fee to change to an earlier or later flight on the same day of travel, advance boarding and priority security screening at select airports. Qualifying members will enjoy gold flight benefits until Dec. 31, 2017.

“In six years, we have built a loyalty program that we believe offers the best value to the travelling public,” said Bob Cummings, WestJet Executive Vice-President, Commercial. “We recognize that it can take a long time to reach gold status when starting with a new program and we believe so strongly in our offering we invite loyalty members from any airline or travel rewards program to get gold status from a company that really cares.”