How Much Do Olympic Athletes Make?

During the Olympic Games in Paris, swimmers, runners, gymnasts, and other athletes have thrilled audiences worldwide, helping NBCUniversal parent company Comcast (CMCSA) reap $1.25 billion in advertising revenue in the first week alone, according to the Associated Press.

People are clearly making money from the Olympics. But what about the athletes?

Competing for Pride, Not Always Money

Olympic athletes are sometimes paid but it’s not always enough to live on.

They get nothing from the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the organization that runs the Olympics. In a comment to NBC Insider, the IOC said that if it were to “organize the Olympic Games on a for-profit business model” and pay athletes, it might have to focus on revenue-generating sports at the expense of more obscure events.

Some national Olympic committees do pay athletes. In 2021, CNBC reported that Singapore paid its gold medalists $737,000, while the United States doled out $37,500 for the same achievement. Most athletes, of course, don’t win medals. And even for those who do, competing in the Olympics can be a costly endeavor.

More than a quarter of Olympic athletes said they made less than $15,000 a year, according to the Wall Street Journal, citing a Congressional report. Wrestler Rulon Gardner took on $70,000 in debt while training for the 2000 Olympic Games. He won a gold medal and $30,000, but it wasn’t enough to cover his expenses and he later filed for bankruptcy.

The report found that after paying for travel, entry fees, and other costs, the average athlete didn’t make money from the Olympics – instead, it cost them $12,000.

Winning Big

The exceptions to the rule are the superstars. For LeBron James, the money that comes with a gold medal is a drop in the bucket, seeing as he just signed a two-year deal with the Los Angeles Lakers for $104 million. Forbes estimated that American gymnast and gold medalist at this year’s Games Simone Biles made more than $7 million in 2023, much of it from endorsements.

If a winner is feeling really strapped for cash, they could always sell their medal. According to NPR, citing Oxford Economics, the metals in the gold and silver medal are worth $1,027 and $535, respectively. The bronze? Only $4.60.

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