Olympic athletes who return with a medal might also find themselves coming back with a cash prize.
While there is no guaranteed cash prize for winning a medal at the Olympics, many countries offer a reward to their victorious athletes, and this amount varies from one country to another.
Traditionally, the Olympics were open only to amateur competitors, making the idea of payment intriguing.
However, in recent years, the rules have changed to allow professional athletes to compete. But what about the prize money?
It depends on where you come from, as some countries are more generous than others.
The Olympics themselves do not offer a financial reward for winners, but some countries do reward their athletes.
Obviously, a gold medal brings a higher reward than a silver, and silver more than bronze.
But how much can US athletes expect?
For US team athletes, the payment is $15,000 for a bronze medal and $23,000 for a silver medal.
If you win the gold, that’s $38,000.
Although many would appreciate these sums, considering these are international level athletes and there are former NBA players and golfers who are billionaires, it might seem like a modest amount.
However, there are countries that pay their athletes significantly more than the US.
For instance, the Republic of Kazakhstan offers $75,000 for a bronze medal, $150,000 for a silver, and $250,000 for a gold.
Now that’s more substantial.
Indonesia and Israel offer even higher rewards, with Israel giving $135,000, $216,000, and $271,000 for bronze, silver, and gold respectively, while Indonesia provides $60,000, $150,000, and $300,000.
Now we’re talking about significant sums, with the top two countries offering much larger rewards to their medallists.
Singapore ranks second in terms of rewards, where a bronze medal earns $186,000, a silver medal $373,000, and a gold $745,000.
Leading the pack is Hong Kong, where a bronze medal fetches $192,000, a silver $384,000, and a gold medal earns $768,000.
The US ranks tenth in how much they pay their athletes, but it’s considerably more than Australia, which is at the bottom with $7,000 for bronze, $10,000 for silver, and $13,000 for gold.
It seems many Olympians aren’t in it for the money after all – who would have thought.