What prizes do Olympic winners receive besides medals?

While thousands of athletes prepare for the Olympics in Paris, aiming for a spot on the podium, some of those who succeed may return home not only with gold medals but also with quite significant monetary rewards. Although the Olympic Games celebrate their champions, granting them immense fame and a place in sports history, they traditionally do not offer athletes the huge cash prizes typical of other competitions. In contrast, athletes around the world often receive cash bonuses for victories in various sporting events. However, this does not mean that Olympic medalists will be left without financial incentives.

This time, some sports federations have expressed a desire to provide financial rewards to their outstanding athletes. In April, the World Athletics Association, acting as the international governing body for athletics, announced that the gold medal in athletics at the Olympic Games will be rewarded with a sum of50 thousand dollars— for the first time for a sports federation of this scale. Then in May, the International Boxing Association, which lost recognition from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) last year due to financial and organizational issues, announced its readiness to allocate100 thousand dollarsto their Olympic boxing champions, thereby setting the tone for other international federations on how to treat their champions.

Nevertheless, such innovations have sparked controversy. Some federations have expressed the opinion that such actions undermine the values of Olympism and put pressure on sports that are unable to offer financial rewards. The IOC, for its part, insists that federations should focus on reducing inequality in their sports rather than supporting their winners. However, representatives of sports federations and the athletes themselves defend the necessity of rewarding the best Olympians, who create a positive image and generate income for the Olympic Games and their sports, calling for increased financial support for all Olympic events.

“Although it is impossible to accurately assess the commercial value of an Olympic medal or the depth of commitment and focus required to represent one’s country at the Olympic Games,” noted the president of World Athletics.Sebastian KoIn April, "I think it's important to start with something and ensure that a portion of the revenue generated by our athletes at the Olympic Games goes back to those who make these games a true global spectacle."

Awards from countries

In addition to federations preparing to reward their champions, some countries also pay attention to rewarding those who win medals, although the amounts of the rewards can vary significantly. For example, inSaudi ArabiaathleteTareg Hamedithe silver medal at the Tokyo Olympics, received5 million riyalsabout1.33 million dollars) as a reward for being close to the gold medal, although he was disqualified after breaking the rules. Other wealthy Gulf countries, such asBahrainandQatarThey are known for offering generous rewards to attract foreign athletes.

Gold medalists fromHong KongThey can expect some of the largest cash rewards at the Olympics in Paris.6 million Hong Kong dollarsmore750 thousand dollars) as part of the rewards scheme for athletes sponsored by the Hong Kong Jockey Club.Singaporealso offers significant financial incentives —1 million Singapore dollarsmore700 thousand dollars) for individual winners,1.5 millionfor the winners of team competitions and2 millionfor those who win in team sports. Although so far the only individual to receive the highest award has been a swimmer.Joseph Schoolingwho won the gold medal in the 100-meter swim at the Rio Olympics in 2016.

Olympic champions fromTaiwanUnder the government program, they can expect to20 million New Taiwan dollarsmore600 thousand dollars) and a monthly pension for life in the amount of125,000 New Taiwan Dollarsabout4 thousand dollarsOther countries that have offered their Olympic champions cash rewards reaching six figures includeIndonesia, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Morocco, Italy, the Philippines, Hungary, Kosovo, Estonia, and Egypt.

Additional benefits

Sometimes athletes receive rewards from both their governments and national sports organizations.

In some countries, alongside monetary rewards, athletes also receive additional benefits — for example, luxury cars or apartments. The authoritiesMalaysiaThey promised their athletes foreign cars in case of successful performances at the Olympics in Paris, but in...KazakhstanOlympic Games winners receive apartments, the sizes of which depend on the color of the medal.

After the victory of the athlete and the shooter fromChinaIn shooting sports at the Olympic Games in London, the provincial authoritiesGuangdongwhere she lived, reported a cash reward of7.65 million yuanmore1 million dollars), as well as the provision of a car and custom-made alcoholic beverages. Other Chinese Olympians also received expensive houses as gifts from construction companies.

After returning home from Tokyo, my badminton friends...Gracia PoliiandApriani RakhayuFrom Indonesia, in addition to cash bonuses from the government, they were also awarded gifts from local authorities and businessmen, including cows, a house, and even their own meatball restaurant. Austrian Olympic champions had previously received a collection of Philharmonic coins worth more than...18,000 dollars, which is also considered a fairly high reward.

InRussiaOlympic Games champions receive4 million rubles(approx.45,300 dollars) in addition to expensive foreign cars, apartments, honorary titles, and lifetime scholarships. Success at the Olympics significantly contributes to a further career, often leading to well-known athletes, such as wrestlers.Alexander Karelin, figure skaterIrina Rodninaand the gymnastSvetlana Khorkina"...to transitioning into politics after finishing a career. 'In our country, success at the Olympic Games often opens the door to the State Duma and grants power,' reads an article in the newspaper 'Komsomolskaya Pravda'."

Sometimes even the licensed right to participate in the Olympics becomes a reason for rewards: the Iraqi football team and a weightlifter.Ali Ammar Yasserreceived land plots, as well as amounts in the amount of10 million Iraqi dinarsmore7 thousand dollars) everyone just for securing their place at the Olympics in Paris.

At the same timeUnited Kingdom, as well as countries likeNorwayandSwedenIt doesn't offer any monetary rewards to its Olympic medalists at all. Some athletes express the opinion that such financial incentives are necessary, while others believe they are inappropriate. "All these gold medalists in athletics are capable of earning good money before and after the Paris Olympics," said the British Olympic rowing champion.Sir Steve Redgrave“After the news that World Athletics is planning to offer its monetary rewards. 'In this way, you are giving money to people who already have good incomes.'”

Nevertheless, the Norwegian Olympic championKarsten WarholmHe, who highly appreciated the innovations of World Athletics, emphasized that winning at the Olympic Games holds a value that surpasses any monetary reward: “This doesn’t change my motivation. I’m not in it for the money, because for me, a gold medal has much greater significance.”