As the Beijing Winter Games get underway, Your Privacy Choices: Opt Out of Sale/Targeted Ads. As the most decorated Olympian of all time, Phelps has earned major endorsement deals with companies like Visa and Under Armour. A vault maneuver was even named after him. The U.S., for instance, is awarding $37,500 for each gold medal an athlete earns in Tokyo, plus $22,500 for silver and $15,000 for bronze, on top of the grants and benefits like health insurance that it makes more widely available. US Olympians . Malaysian gold medalists receive roughly $1,200 in monthly payments for life, Estonian winners receive 4,600 a year, and Indonesian champions get an $18,000-a-year retirement plan. Aaron: If I got to get shoes every two to three months, that's $200, $300. But Cheung, who had carried Hong Kongs flag during the opening ceremony, did his home territory proud, battling back from an early deficit against Garozzo to become Hong Kongs first Olympic champion in 25 years. Additional lifetime monthly salary of 5,000, 3,000, and 2,000 ringgit for Gold, Silver, and Bronze, respectively. Most of that prize money is not taxable unless athletes report gross income that exceeds $1 million. Olympic athletes do not get paid by just attending the Olympic Games. Singapore pays its athletes $744,000 for a gold, $372,000 for. Some U.S. athletes also receive stipends that help cover their rent and food, per CNBC. But those are mostly theoretical exercises: Neither delegation has ever won a Winter Olympic medal. Become a GH+ member to read and save unlimited articles. Yahoo Finance reports that those delicious prizes remain on offer in Tokyo. Although the medal bonuses help, it is not enough money to live off of, especially when the Olympic Games only occur every four years. UK Olympic medallists have . Malaysian gold medalists receive roughly $1,200 in monthly payments for life, Estonian winners receive 4,600 a year, and Indonesian champions get an $18,000-a-year retirement plan. The United States pays a handsome fee per medal: $37,500 for each gold medal, $22,500 for each silver medal, and $15,000 for each bronze medal. Russia Russia, this year's Winter Olympics host country, treats their athletes well. 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. Winning the US Open when I was involved was a $25k payday, and if you are even in the semi-finals (top 32) you are definitely sponsored. A Division of NBCUniversal. The synchronized swimmer landed a part-time job at Dick's Sporting Goods, which hires Olympians and Olympic hopefuls as part of its Contenders program. Narrator: They also have a long list of expenses to train for their sport. To watch & listen the FULL Podcast check out the links belowListen on Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/5JQu91FRevsm4GSPr8JbYBListen on Apple Podcasts . 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. A small handful of athletes get paid housing, but not many. He teaches statistics at Brigham Young University, but the marathoner only uses basic math to train for the 26.2 mile race. Another source of funding is prize money. AZN 400,000, AZN 200,000, and AZN 100,000, for Gold, Silver, and Bronze, respectively in 2016 Rio Olympics. All Rights Reserved. The financial strain is huge. $10,000 - Olympic bronze medal. Additionally, they stay in the Olympic village for around a month. The gymnast earned a bronze medal for pommel horse, but the 25-year-old dad also works as a licensed realtor in Arizona. For elite athletes, theres a loophole: win a medal at the Olympics or the Asian Games. The United States pays a handsome fee per medal: $37,500 for each gold medal, $22,500 for each silver medal, and $15,000 . But many Olympic medalists. Weve been independently researching and testing products for over 120 years. The first is a corporate sponsorship, which is when a company pays the athlete to wear its brand on their clothing. "Its, 'Sponsor me because look at the money that I brought you last year in these events and this is what I plan to bring you next year.'". But scoring lucrative deals is rare, and hardlythe norm. This year, U.S. Olympians can expect to receive $37,500 for each gold medal they win, $22,500 for each silver, and $15,000 for each bronze from the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee. Everything was shut down. By clicking Sign up, you agree to receive marketing emails from Insider We want to hear from you. Russia Is the Only Winner in the Kamila Valieva Mess, Its Time for USA Gymnastics to Take the Fall Its Been Avoiding, The 24 Craziest Stats From the Tokyo Olympics. He attained a gold medal at the Athens Olympics in 2004. Ecuador set a $100,000 reward for any athlete who could win goldso congrats to champion road cyclist Ricard Carapz on his new stacks. Athletes don't get paid for taking part in the Summer or Winter Olympic Games, but do tend to receive a monetary reward from their country's Olympic committee if they win a medal. Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. The state government of Manipur has pledged to give Indian weightlifter Saikhom Mirabai Chanu 10 million Indian rupees ($134,000) for her silver-medal performance. A sports governing body will have varying levels of support for different athletes. Dozens of countries are offering bonuses to athletes who claim one of the 327 medals available across the 15 sports at the Beijing Olympics, which officially kick off with todays opening ceremony. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site. Lauryn: When sponsors and brands are looking at athletes, they're looking at marketability, the return on investment they're going to get. A 2012 CNN Report states most American Olympic athletes make $15,000 or less. Everyone, that is, except for boxer and former Olympian Floyd Mayweather who earned at least an estimated $80M, possibly more, in just one fight (against Saul "Canelo" Alvarez) alone in 2013. The Winter Olympics take place in Beijing, China this month with nearly 3,000 total athletes traveling to the games. The payments extend through the top eight places in each event. [3], According to Forbes, only Great Britain, New Zealand, Norway and Sweden don't provide monetary incentives for their athletes winning an Olympic medal (as of the 2020 Summer Olympics). What do athletes get paid if they win a medal at the Olympics? 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. Italy now pays 180,000 euros to its gold medalistsa 20% jump from 2016plus 90,000 for silver and 60,000 for bronze. 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. (Ironically, most Olympians couldnt afford to own and maintain such cars. It gives medalists a lifetime allowance starting at age 45: 100% of the average net salary in the country for gold medalists (roughly $1,100 in 2021), falling to 80% for silver medalists and 60% for bronze. Usain Bolt Celebrating at the Beijing Olympics. The Philippines clinched its first ever gold medal in Tokyo this week, making Filipino weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz the country's first Olympic gold medalist. What is known is the amount athletes will make if the win a medal in Tokyo. Those salaries are RM5,000 ($1,182 USD) for gold, RM3,000 ($709 USD) for silver, and RM2,000 ($473 USD) for bronze. [22], The largest prize money under the MAP is for athletes who clinch an Olympic gold medal. A gold medal is worth $37,500, a. mandatory military service following their training. This is just the second Winter Games for Malaysia, which will be represented by skiers Aruwin Salehhuddin and Jeffrey Webb. Then in June he quit his job. During this year's Winter . The countrys Central Asian neighbors also reportedly offer big cash prizes to medalists. Most major companies are paying for travel, equipment, contest entry, etc. Narrator: So how do Olympians make money, and why isn't it enough? 2023 CNBC LLC. This is a BETA experience. The first is a corporate sponsorship, which is when a company pays the athlete to wear its brand on their clothing. Athletes who win gold in the Beijing Olympics receive 50,000,000 Hungarian Forint, or roughly $161,000. However, as stated by US Olympic rower Megan Musnicki, her total stipend amounts to a meagre $2000 a month and for athletes competing in less mainstream sports such as fencing it can often drop to as low as $300 a month. But what else does it earn them? I didn't even have ways of making money for rent. Few feats in sports earn athletes as much glory and respect as winning an Olympic medal. More than half of U.S. Olympic hopefuls, or 59%, reported making less than $25,000 during the year of their respective Olympics, according to a COVID-19 impact survey distributed to 4,400. And that's the amount an athlete earns for each medalso let's say you. Hungary's national Olympic committee is one of many that awards bonuses for medals at the Games. Per NBC, U.S. Olympic winners get $37,500 for winning gold, $22,500 for winning silver, and $15,000 for winning bronze. There are other forms of support for U.S. Olympians, as well, including health insurance that's provided courtesy of Elite Athlete Health Insurance. Medallists get the most out of this, with training worth between 37,000 and 57,000 being provided. Learn more about our Aaron: There was meets that I thought I would be able to get in and clean up and make money I didn't have. What you stand to earn by grabbing medals: $20,000 - Olympic gold medal. For Olympic athletes who may not be big names quite yet, they often receive funding from friends or family and local businesses. Beyond that, Olympians rely on other revenue streams for their sporting endeavors, including efforts to land lucrative endorsement deals. For example, retired Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt has made more than $30 million in one year just from endorsements alone, per AS. 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. Athleta now sponsors Simone Biles. We pay to our very top athletes around $4,000 a month, plus performance bonuses. Is it all worth it? So, they sold emwhich while totally understandable, feels a little like kicking a gift horse in the mouth.) She was the first American woman to win medals in both the Summer and Winter Olympics. However, the Olympic Committee tends to pay for most of the expenses, such as food, accommodation and transportation. Bae explained that he lost [his] feel how to play golf. Bangladesh, which has never won an Olympic medal, has pledged to pay about $300,000 for gold, about $150,000 for silver and about $100,000 for bronze, according to an official at the national Olympic committee. The United States is one of them. While the International Olympic Committee itself don't provide monetary rewards to Olympic medalists, some countries provide prize money to athletes for winning a medal in the Olympics. 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! And nothing could be further from the truth. Narrator: Many athletes have turned to crowdsourcing to supplement their incomes. Insuring the Olympics a $2.5 billion affair. But every athlete's contract is different. Compared to the Olympics and their large monetary rewards, Paralympic champions historically have not earned as much for each medal finish. Kazakhstan weightlifter Zulfiya Chinshanlo competing on July 26. However, the Olympic Committee tends to pay for most of the expenses, such as food, accommodation and transportation. Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes, and Market Data and Analysis. Additionally, they stay in the Olympic village for around a month. 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]. I've been raised by a single mother since I'm 8 years old, so she definitely was funding everything when I was younger. Here are 12 countries and territories offering six-figure payouts for gold medalists in individual sports; the prizes are listed in U.S. dollars, converted from the local currency at the exchange rate as of January 28. 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. In addition, a gold-medal performance boosts an athletes stipend from the committee. Finally, athletes can win prize money. As a physical education teacher, he uses the experience to teach students perseverance. 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. If you buy through our links, we may earn a commission. But I wouldn't be upset if in the future, we were able to make some more money and not necessarily have to have two jobs. Compare that to the salary of USA Track & Field's CEO, who earned $1.2 million in 2018. Athletes have to go out and get their own sponsors. So, how much does an Olympian make? Australia, however, offers far less Olympic medal prize money relative to other nations. Phoenix Petroleum is also honoring her medal with free fuel for life. More often, these sponsorships are performance-based, meaning an athlete has to win a certain number of competitions. U.S. competitors in the Paralympic Games will earn $7,500 for each gold, $5,250 for each silver, and $3,750 for each bronze. 10 Kyle Keith Shewfelt Shewfelt is a gymnast from Canada. Instead, the ROC winners will be treated to the golden tones of Pyotr Tchaikovskys Piano Concerto No. Follow The Money, Jenna Dewan Has Legs, Butt In Pole Dancing IG. Plus, there are also hefty costs associated with competing at this level. But the size of these stipends can vary wildly based on how well an athlete places and which sport they compete in. Turkey lists its medal bonuses in republic golda 22-karat-gold coinas opposed to the countrys official currency, the lira. Narrator: Across America, athletes are facing a decision. After an August 2016 decree, Malaysias Paralympians receive the same amounts. You've hit your max! Just like a game show or the lottery, the winnings on Olympic medals are . Slate is published by The Slate Group, a Graham Holdings Company. Here, we dive into the math behind 15 Olympians' take-home pay, from hourly wages to multi-million-dollar salaries. With approximately 15,000 athletes competing in 26 sports, with around 1,000 medals up for grabs, as CNN reported, the majority of Olympic athletes will see neither medal nor sponsorship. The government of tiny Kosovo is paying 100,000 euros to gold medalists, 60,000 to silver medalists and 40,000 to bronze medalists, with two Olympic champions (judokas Nora Gjakova and Distria Krasniqi) in Tokyo already. The self-proclaimed "Shot Diva" just became the first American woman to win shot put at the Olympics, and set a new national record. I worked at Panera, a bank. All males in South Korea are drafted into 18 months of mandatory military service following their training. Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes. Bangladesh archer Diya Siddique competing on July 29. If a team wins, each member gets their own . Clement's got a few more famous moves than the 400-meter hurdles. Competitors don't really receive a fixed salary. [21] The programme's name was changed to Major Games Award Programme (MAP) in 2018. If competitors have an audience of a few million followers, that's usually enough to attract advertisers' interest. Narrator: How much funding an athlete gets depends on performance, and Lauryn: Their ability is to be able to earn medals. 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. These logos will appear on the athletes' clothing during non-Olympic competitions, though. Here's an insight into where their income comes from. But many countries do, and while the U.S. and Japan have plenty of company in their general price rangethe individual-gold-medal payouts in Australia, Brazil, Canada, Finland, Portugal, Serbia and Switzerland, to name a few, are in the same ballpark, stretching from about $15,000 to about $70,000they ultimately land on the modest end of the spectrum. 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. TYR Sport sponsors Katie Ledecky for $7 million. In some countries, athletes may make hundreds of thousands of extra dollars based on the medals they win. And in 2020, the USOPC launched the Athlete Marketing Project, which better connects athletes with sponsors. Beijing individual gold medalists are entitled to 3,049 BSB, or about $143,000 at the current level. And then you also have to pay taxes. Narrator: Some Olympians make millions of dollars. As a nod to the rest of the team that made it to Tokyo, every Hong Kong athlete at the Games is also receiving free train rides for a year. So, how much money do Olympians make? Copyright 2023 Sporting News Holdings Limited. I started driving for DoorDash. Some changes have been made to get more money in the hands of the athletes. 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. Monica started one to fund her way to Tokyo. If you buy through our links, we may earn a commission. Some of the Korean public wonder if too many athletes are gaining exemptionsskepticism that the Washington Post found was even more marked when the program was extended to specific finishes in the World Cup and other athletic events. Phil: That money could ensure that our US Olympic team are treated equally to the level of achievement or treated to a salary that is appropriate for them representing this country. Learn more about our, How 15 U.S. Olympians Actually Make Money. This page was last edited on 7 February 2023, at 15:14. Most Olympians, though, aren't multimillionaire athletes like Naomi Osaka, Rory McIlroy or Kevin Durant, so competing at this elite level can be a financial struggle. Monica: I would ref competitions here in New York City, but all of them were canceled, so I wasn't making money from that. Heres what winners around the world can take homealong with their gold, silver, or bronze. Additionally, Olympians can receive an athletic grant or part-time job through the Olympic Job Opportunities Program. South Koreas podium prize might be the most practical: The country enforces one of the worlds longest forced military service conscription policies in the world. You may opt-out by. 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. A first-place finish in an Olympic individual event is worth roughly $380,000, and athletes can earn another half that amount for setting an Olympic record. The British Olympic Association does not pay athlete salaries, nor do they pay medal bounties. [24][25][26], Prior to the RA 10699, standard government incentives are codified under the RA 9064 or the National Athletes, Coaches and Trainers Benefits and Incentives Act of 2001 which mandates a prize money of 5 million for Olympic gold medalists, 2.5 million for silver medalists and 1 million for bronze medalists. Making the podium isnt always the financialor gustatorywindfall you might expect, especially if you compete in a rather niche sport, like say, race walking. Caroline is a writer and editor with almost a decade of experience. ), you might expect a lot of fortune to go with it. Another source of income is through endorsement deals. Basically, their wealth depends a lot on their side hustles. Though again, most of these earnings do not come from medal prizes. In dollar terms, a. Lauryn: During the course of my career, I was really fortunate. The prize for a gold medal is $25,000, $15,000 for a silver medal, and $10,000 for a bronze. 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). Of course, athletes only win medals once every four years. Rp 5 billion, Rp 2 billion, and Rp 1 billion, for Gold, Silver, and Bronze, respectively. The average salary for volleyball players is $45,722. The same year, the amount for Paralympic Games. The highest-paid athletes in the United States earn over $100 million annually. Most teams have corporate or private sponsors who pay for the Olympians' costs. UK Sport's funding for Olympic and Paralympic sport for the Tokyo cycle is 374 million, with 69 per cent from Lottery money, and 31 per cent from the government. In the UK, the Government does put aside around $160 million (114.7 million) each and every year, which is given to Olympic and Paralympic sports. A 29-year-old Olympian who reaches the life expectancy of 78 would collect more than $300,000. 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. 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. Massage therapists, nutritionists. A company covers some of their athlete's expenses in exchange for its logo on the athlete's uniform. But the moves haven't been sweeping enough. As a reward for her historic achievement, Diaz will reportedly receive at least 33 million Philippine pesos (around $600,000) from the Philippine Sports Commission as well as the country's top businessmen. Hong Kong hasnt captured a medal in its five previous Winter Olympic appearances, but it did give out the same big prize at the Summer Games last year. (The price tag for a silver is $111,000.) The actor and model appeared in Beyonce's "Run The World (Girls)" music video. Disclosure: CNBC parent NBCUniversal owns NBC Sports and NBC Olympics. 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. Some countries absolutely pile on the cash. As the Beijing Winter Games get underway, plenty of athletes will be competing for medals, honor, andas it turns outlots of money. Turns out, it varies. However, if an athlete earns a medal, there is a medal bonus attached to it. The sporting economy in the U.S. allows athletes to better monetize their talents as most of it is driven by the private sector, according to Unmish Parthasarathi, founder and executive director at consulting firm Picture Board Partners. The World Athletics Championships are the largest event in track and field, and this year, almost 2,000 competitors from 192 countries are in Eugene, Oregon, to win medals, set records, and earn . China: $31,400. Working a part-time job at Scheels, which is an all-sports store here in Iowa City. That's being rich. Athletes around the world salary ranges from $16,628 to $187,200. Indonesia's Aflah Prawira competing in a heat for the men's 1,500m freestyle on July 30. Lithuanias government anchors its medal bonuses to the countrys basic social benefit, a monthly amount used in various social security calculations. A gold medal is worth $37,500, a silver medal is worth $22,500 and a bronze medal is worth $15,000. Payments to U.S. athletes in the Olympic and Paralympic Games are currently set at. Weightlifter Kuo Hsing-Chun of Taiwan (or Chinese Taipei) on July 27. How much money do Olympic athletes get paid? Olympic champions also receive an allowance of about $1,400 a monthfor life. This is very common with medal-winning Olympians. Estonia doesnt officially hand out a six-figure paycheck but deserves recognition as an honorary No. But that money doesn't come from the International Olympic Committee. As long as the athlete's other earnings don't exceed $1 million, the medal . Not a bad haul! And then there was training facilities being shut down. 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. She went into credit card debt because of me. How much does Russia pay for gold medal? Tiny Cyprus has competed at every Winter Olympics since 1980, with skier Yianno Kouyoumdjian set to race in Beijing. The IOC has recently eased Rule 40, which prohibited athletes from making money off their image rights before, during, and after the Olympics.