Athletes can also pick up another $112,000 from the government for an Olympic-record performance. Narrator: Compare that to track and field, where 128 American athletes are headed to the Olympic Games competing for 48 gold medals. Thats no small perk in Denmark, which has one of the worlds highest tax rates but awards roughly $15,000 tax free for individual gold medals. Only one of the delegations six athletes in Tokyo still has a shot at that prize this year: 400-meter runner Mohammad Jahir Rayhan, who will be lucky to advance out of the preliminaries. 11 Best Parenting Books for New Moms and Dads, 12 Best LED Face Masks to Zap Acne and Wrinkles. Russia certainly has a great deal to celebrate, delivering an exciting and well-run event while finishing atop the medal count in both the number of medals (33) as well as gold garnered (13). Other Filipino companies are giving her thousands more in cash to go along with it. For the Tokyo Olympics, Italian gold medalists receive 180,000 for their victory, with smaller prizes for silver and bronze. You can now save articles. Naomi Osaka of Team Japan serves during her Women's Singles Third Round match against Marketa Vondrousova of Team Czech Republic on day four of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Ariake Tennis Park on July 27, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan. If there are any other additional costs not covered by the committee, athletes must look to their sponsors to cover the expenses. US athletes striving toward the Olympics are generally left to their own devices in terms of funding training and travel for most of their careers, and even once they reach the top tier, they. The prize for a gold medal is $25,000, $15,000 for a silver medal, and $10,000 for a bronze. Making the podium isnt always the financialor gustatorywindfall you might expect, especially if you compete in a rather niche sport, like say, race walking. Heres what winners around the world can take homealong with their gold, silver, or bronze. Narrator: They also have a long list of expenses to train for their sport. A gold medal is worth $37,500, a. To read and save unlimited articles, sign up to become a GH+ member. This year, athletes will receive up to 142,288 (roughly $159,000) per gold in individual sports, and teams will receive up to 426,862 ($477,000) to divvy up. Good old spon-con helps many athletes make it big. American Olympians who win a gold medal get awarded $37,500. KYIV, Ukraine (AP . Like the Philippines, Hong Kong also won its first ever gold medal during the 2020 Olympics, in dramatic fashionand the territory decided to break the bank to celebrate. Ahead of the Games, Forbes reached out to the national Olympic committees or government sports ministries of all 91 countries and territories set to compete and was able to confirm that at least 32 will pay cash prizes for medals; only four of the respondents do not plan to pay their athletes some sort of bonus explicitly for winning medals. Bangladesh archer Diya Siddique competing on July 29. A 2012 CNN Report states most American Olympic athletes make $15,000 or less. Roughly 60% of Team USA's athletes in Tokyo made less than $25,000 a year, according to Forbes. And like other countries including Germany and Liechtenstein, Latvia pays for finishes a few spots past the podium; its payments extend through sixth place. Indonesia paid out 5 billion rupiah to its 2016 gold medaliststhe mixed doubles badminton team of Tontowi Ahmad and Liliyana Natsirand an official said before this years Games that the prize for Tokyo would be at least that large. Copyright 2023 Sporting News Holdings Limited. The United States gives athletes who win gold $37,500, while one European country awards six figures. And Russian winners? Some countries absolutely pile on the cash. Written into Article 39 of the Korean constitution, this provision is hard to avoidunless, say, youre a K-pop star specially recommended for exemption by the Ministry of Culture. Kosovo's Nora Gjakova after defeating Japan's Tsukasa Yoshida in a judo semifinal bout on July 26. Mar 2, 2023 Updated Mar 2, 2023. [22], The largest prize money under the MAP is for athletes who clinch an Olympic gold medal. Most athletes who compete at the Olympics can only hope to break even as they hunt for modest stipends and scarce sponsorships that often dont cover the costs of years of training, equipment, medical and travel expenses. While medal bonuses are the domain of national Olympic committees in many countriesalbeit sometimes with government backingother nations cut out the middleman and disburse the bonuses directly through their sports ministry or another government agency. Bobsled is a much smaller Olympic sport, and so there's three medals that we can earn. While all A-level athletes each month get a salary of about $2,800 and roughly $2,500 for training, gold medalists see their monthly wage rise to $4,500 for two years, with the same preparation funding. The self-proclaimed "Shot Diva" just became the first American woman to win shot put at the Olympics, and set a new national record. Narrator: Across America, athletes are facing a decision. The commission vowed to give Diaz an additional 5 million pesos, and with contributions from President Rodrigo Duterte, the city of Zamboanga and other individuals and companies, she is due to haul in 48.5 million Philippine pesos ($970,000), as well as a house, a condo unit, a van and unlimited flights on two airlines. In 2016, along with straight cash, the Russian government gave away luxury cars, apartments, and a literal racehorse to various winners for the country at the Rio Games. The Estonian fencers won the women's epee team final against South Korea on July 27. Weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz snagged the Philippines first-ever Olympic gold on Monday, ending a 97-year drought and securing the roughly $200,000 official prize on offer from the Philippine Sports Commission. U.S. athletes also receive other forms of support including health insurance, access to top-tier medical facilities and college tuition assistance. Athletes who win gold in the Beijing Olympics receive 50,000,000 Hungarian Forint, or roughly $161,000. Narrator: Many athletes have turned to crowdsourcing to supplement their incomes. Sixty percent of elite athletes don't consider themselves financially stable. How Olympians make money, explained. The Czech Republic has 116 athletes competing in Beijingtying with Sweden for the ninth-largest delegation at the Gamesalthough 48 come from its mens and womens hockey teams. Aaron: It kind of puts a chip on my shoulder to go even harder, to compete at the best and compete with the best so that I can take myself out of this position. The data showed the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee rewards its athletes $37,500 for every gold medal won, $22,500 for silver and $15,000 for bronze . If there are any other additional costs not covered by the committee, athletes must look to their sponsors to cover the expenses. Phoenix Petroleum is also honoring her medal with free fuel for life. Swimming, there's a lot of money, gymnastics, there's a lot of money. Lauryn: During the course of my career, I was really fortunate. Though again, most of these earnings do not come from medal prizes. Narrator: Coaches can cost more than $100 an hour. Some U.S. athletes also receive stipends that help cover their rent and food, per CNBC. He'd been making $10 an hour at a resort, but he gave notice because he couldn't get race . Lauryn: The USOPC has something called Operation Gold. The table below shows some of the top pay rates for gold medals from different countries. This allows those that receive funding to train full-time and also pays for the necessary support teams, facilities, and equipment. Additionally, Olympians can receive an athletic grant or part-time job through the Olympic Job Opportunities Program. Cheung Ka-long of Hong Kong fencing against Daniele Garozzo of Italy in the men's foil final on July 26. But most athletes rely on at least a few of these different income boosters: As you'd probably expect, athletes get a sizable check for winning an event in their sport. Yahoo Finance reports that those delicious prizes remain on offer in Tokyo. But every athlete's contract is different. For athletes who win multiple Olympic gold medals, they entitled S$1 million only for the first individual gold medal won at the Games. Team USA skier Jaelin Kauf wins a silver medal for her Womens Mogul run at the 2022 Beijing Olympics. Working a part-time job at Scheels, which is an all-sports store here in Iowa City. Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes. The Winter Olympics take place in Beijing, China this month with nearly 3,000 total athletes traveling to the games. Moments of Olympic glory aren't just paybacks for years of hard work. Athletes can get stipends directly from the US Olympic & Paralympic Committee or from the groups that run the Olympic sports teams, called the national governing bodies. We pay to our very top athletes around $4,000 a month, plus performance bonuses. If you buy through our links, we may earn a commission. The U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee rewards athletes $37,500 for every gold medal won, $22,500 for silver and $15,000 for bronze. Great Britain, New Zealand, Norway and Sweden, for example, dont provide any extra pay for medals, and neither do smaller delegations like Saint Kitts and Nevis, Tonga or the U.S. Virgin Islands. While the country has never claimed a medal on snow, the Cyprus Sports Organization will pay for a finish anywhere in the top 16: roughly $168,000 for a gold medal, $140,000 for silver and $123,000 for bronze, all the way down to $11,000 for 16th place. Cheung Ka-long, a fencer, won gold in mens foil in Tokyo, earning 5 million Hong Kong dollars (about $642,000 at the current exchange rate) under the citys Henderson Land Commendation Scheme for Elite Athletes. The Russian Olympic Committees theme song when winning gold is Tchaikovskys Piano Concerto No. And like other countries including. For example, snowboarder Chloe Kim signed with Nike, meaning she can appear on their advertisements. (You can exhale, taxpayers.). New rules approved last year from USA Track & Field, the sport's national governing body, set aside $10,000 for any . Russia has one of the smaller payments worldwide. Is it all worth it? In some countries, athletes may make hundreds of thousands of extra dollars based on the medals they win. A Division of NBCUniversal. A sports governing body will have varying levels of support for different athletes. Thats a lot of green: The Italians won 28 medals at the 2016 Games, the ninth-most among all countries, and have 20 medals in Tokyo, good for seventh on the table as of Friday night. There's times where I don't even have money in my bank account. (Update, February 7: On top of that big prize, the Sports Federation & Olympic Committee of Hong Kong offers smaller rewards of its own, including the equivalent of $1,900 for gold.). So if I can do that while I'm at one point working two jobs and DoorDash and everything like that, then I can't imagine what I can do if I didn't have to do that. This is on top of the grants and benefits like health . The Olympians were presented with their brand new set of wheels at a ceremony on Thursday, which was also attended by Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, Interfax . With very little options, he used the only skill that he learned to make some money: performing gymnastic stunts on the streets. UK Olympic medallists have . Singapore's Yu Mengyu during the women's singles table tennis bronze medal match on July 29. 1, and I for one think its a banger. With of all this time designated to the Olympics, how do Olympic athletes make money? They are from endorsement deals. With all of the fame that .css-7qz8rz{-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;text-decoration-thickness:0.0625rem;text-decoration-color:#f7623b;text-underline-offset:0.25rem;color:inherit;-webkit-transition:background 0.4s;transition:background 0.4s;background:linear-gradient(#ffffff, #ffffff 50%, #feebe7 50%, #feebe7);-webkit-background-size:100% 200%;background-size:100% 200%;}.css-7qz8rz:hover{color:#000000;text-decoration-color:border-link-body-hover;-webkit-background-position:100% 100%;background-position:100% 100%;}Olympic athletes seem to have (hello, Simone Biles! So always going into a race with that is an immense amount of pressure. But the size of these stipends can vary wildly based on how well an athlete places and which sport they compete in. For Olympic athletes who may not be big names quite yet, they often receive funding from friends or family and local businesses. Its not the only country that offers additional pay for a record breaker. For example, tennis star Naomi Osaka reportedly made $55 million from endorsements in 12 months, and was named the highest-paid female athlete ever, according to reports. For Olympic athletes who may not be big names quite yet, they often receive funding from friends or family and local businesses. That's wealth. Turns out, it varies. The pay structure has left many athletes broke, driving for DoorDash, or crowdsourcing. In comparison, Singapore rewards its gold medalists nearly 20 times more than the U.S. Players who clinch their first individual gold medal for the city-state stand to receive 1 million Singapore dollars ($737,000). Maggie: You know, a lot of girls on our team are coaches. $5,000 - Top 5 position in World Championship. Do Olympic athletes get paid? The United States pays a handsome fee per medal: $37,500 for each gold medal, $22,500 for each silver medal, and $15,000 . It's safe to assume most Olympic athletes compete for the love of the game. In Rio, the first-time Olympian earned a bronze in the men's light flyweight event. Compared to the Olympics and their large monetary rewards, Paralympic champions historically have not earned as much for each medal finish. Here's a look at how much money medalists from 12 countries could take home, based on data compiled by CNBC from various national Olympic committees, sport associations as well as personal finance site Money Under 30. That money is on top of the grants and benefits like health insurance that are more widely available to Team USA athletes, all of it paid by the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee, which fundraises through a nonprofit foundation and does not receive federal funding. Malaysia diver Yan Yee Ng during the three-meter springboard preliminary round on July 30. Something like a $250,000 earning turns into $125,000 really quick. In fact, some countries offer much higher rewards for earning gold at Olympic . Russian Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko awards Russian two-time silver medalist swimmer Yulia Yefimova with the Order of Honour during a ceremony at the Kremlin on Aug. 25, 2016, in Moscow. Most Team USA athletes are not represented by sports agents and some have no sponsors or endorsements at all, according to a Forbes report. You can now save articles. The IOC has recently eased Rule 40, which prohibited athletes from making money off their image rights before, during, and after the Olympics. For example, a gold winner for Team USA would clinch $37,500 for their efforts while their counterpart in Singapore would receive $737,000 nearly 20 times more. Outside of the ring, the boxer works with his dad as a lube technician at a Kansas trucking company. We're not sponsored athletes on cereal boxes and Gatorade bottles. Still, these exemptions can be critical for prolonging an athletes career. Britain and Iceland are among those that dont, although they provide other sorts of grants to athletes. Got it. In 2012, US News & World Report found it costs up to $100,000 a year for athletes to be Olympians. Kosovo's Albin Tahiri in the slalom at the world championships in February 2021. In Beijing, Meinhardt became the youngest U.S. Olympic fencer of all time. Aaron: If I got to get shoes every two to three months, that's $200, $300. It really set me back financially. Some other countries similarly offer pensions to medalists, including Croatia, which has had more success on the snow, with 11 medals in its Winter Olympic history. For athletes who win multiple Olympic gold medals, they entitled S$1 million only for the first individual gold medal won at the Games.[23]. Coaches who are Filipino citizens who personally trained winning Filipino Olympians are also entitled to prize money 50% of the cash incentives for gold, silver, and bronze medalists. Tiny Cyprus has competed at every Winter Olympics since 1980, with skier Yianno Kouyoumdjian set to race in Beijing. Aaron: In a matter of 22 hours, I want to say it was, I had all the money that I needed, and it was such a wild moment for me. Slate is published by The Slate Group, a Graham Holdings Company. Narrator: An Olympic gold-medal rower told USA Today she receives $2,000 a month. You've hit your max! It's now up to $30,000. Unlike countries such as the UK or Singapore, American Olympians don't get paid to attend the Olympics. This is very common with medal-winning Olympians. Athletes who win gold receive 1 million ringgit ($236,149), while silver winners are awarded 300,000 ringgit, and 100,000 ringgit is given to athletes who win bronze. Outside of the major sports, and those athletes that have high profiles, a lot of these athletes really struggle financially, Dr. Tim Baghurst, the head of the Interdisciplinary Center for Athletic Coaching at Florida State University, told WUSA9. The fencer arrived at the Games ranked 19th in foil, and his path didnt get any easier from there: He had to face 2018 world champion Alessio Foconi in the Round of 16 before tangling with the defending Olympic champion, Daniele Garozzo, in the final. All contents 2023 The Slate Group LLC. Canada is not the only country to reward their Olympic athletes for earning medals. Grizzlies superstar Ja Morant finds himself the subject of controversy yet again after an early morning social media post appeared to show Morant holding a gun inside a club. Weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz will benefit from this match, as she won the countrys first gold medal ever last weeka feat the country has chased since its first Olympic delegation attended the 1924 Paris Games. This page was last edited on 7 February 2023, at 15:14. Some of that money is provided for annual athlete training and stipends. Narrator: And the pay gap among athletes has only worsened during the pandemic. Hearst Magazine Media, Inc. All Rights Reserved. She was the first American woman to win medals in both the Summer and Winter Olympics. So, how much money do Olympians make? Individual-sport athletes from Bulgaria are eligible to receive up to about $143,000 per gold medal, depending on the budget of the Ministry of Youth and Sports. The International Olympic Committees Rule 40 severely limits which sponsors and partners athletes can promote at the Games, and many athletes have had a difficult time profiting off their Olympic experience. Cheung captured the attention of the Hong Kong mediaincluding live analysis from the independent Hong Kong paper the South China Morning Postand he won a sizable payout after triumphing: HK$5 million. These totals absolutely dwarf payments from Olympic committees like that of the United States. And instead of a onetime jackpot, Malaysia, Estonia, and Indonesia promise their winning athletes decades of subsidies.