Hidilyn Diaz of Staff Philippines competes throughout the Weightlifting - Ladies's 55kg Group A on day three of the 2020 Olympic Video games at Tok
Hidilyn Diaz of Staff Philippines competes throughout the Weightlifting – Ladies’s 55kg Group A on day three of the 2020 Olympic Video games at Tokyo Worldwide Discussion board on July 26, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan.
Chris Graythen | Getty Pictures
Why some athletes earn extra
Greater than 600 U.S. athletes are competing on the Tokyo Olympics, and the US has to this point received 11 gold, 11 silver and 9 bronze.
The U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee rewards athletes $37,500 for each gold medal received, $22,500 for silver and $15,000 for bronze. Most of that prize cash shouldn’t be taxable except athletes report gross revenue that exceeds $1 million.
U.S. athletes additionally obtain different types of help together with medical health insurance, entry to top-tier medical amenities and school tuition help.
As compared, Singapore rewards its gold medalists practically 20 occasions greater than the U.S. Gamers who clinch their first particular person gold medal for the city-state stand to obtain 1 million Singapore {dollars} ($737,000). The prize cash is taxable and awardees are required to return a portion of it to their nationwide sports activities associations for future coaching and improvement.
The nation despatched solely 23 athletes to Tokyo.
The sporting financial system within the U.S. permits athletes to higher monetize their abilities as most of it’s pushed by the personal sector, in keeping with Unmish Parthasarathi, founder and government director at consulting agency Image Board Companions.
In locations like Singapore, India and elsewhere, most of the nationwide sporting initiatives are pushed by governments that typically use greater financial rewards to encourage a rising sporting tradition, he instructed CNBC.
Malaysia additionally has hefty rewards for its Olympic winners.
Athletes who win gold obtain 1 million ringgit ($236,149), whereas silver winners are awarded 300,000 ringgit, and 100,000 ringgit is given to athletes who win bronze. In greenback phrases, a Malaysian Olympic bronze winner will obtain the next efficiency reward than a gold winner from Australia or Canada.
How athletes earn money
Past receiving financial and non-monetary rewards from their nations for profitable medals, Olympians depend on different income streams for his or her sporting endeavors.
Athletes from larger, extra aggressive nations obtain stipends or coaching grants from their nationwide sports activities associations. Prime performers gather prize cash by profitable nationwide and worldwide tournaments. Others draw common wage by holding a wide range of jobs.
Some, like U.S. badminton participant Zhang Beiwen, reportedly relied on crowdsourcing to finance their journey to Tokyo. Most Staff USA athletes aren’t represented by sports activities brokers and a few haven’t any sponsors or endorsements in any respect, in keeping with a Forbes report.
Naomi Osaka of Staff Japan serves throughout her Ladies’s Singles Third Spherical match towards Marketa Vondrousova of Staff Czech Republic on day 4 of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Video games at Ariake Tennis Park on July 27, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan.
David Ramos | Getty Pictures
A handful of athletes might rating multimillion greenback endorsements or sponsorship offers, both earlier than competing on the Olympics or after reaching success within the Video games. For instance, tennis star Naomi Osaka reportedly made $55 million from endorsements in 12 months, and was named the highest-paid feminine athlete ever, in keeping with reviews.
However scoring profitable offers is uncommon, and hardly the norm.
Parthasarathi identified that one worthwhile profession transfer for some athletes is to enter teaching after retirement as individuals are keen to pay a premium for former Olympians.
Disclosure: CNBC mother or father NBCUniversal owns NBC Sports activities and NBC Olympics. NBC Olympics is the U.S. broadcast rights holder to all Summer time and Winter Video games via 2032.