Occurring only once every four years, the Olympic Games are one of the biggest sports events in the world. Athletes train intensely over many years in preparation for this momentous tournament. The tournament currently consists of 42 different disciplines for athletes to participate in.
Yes, the gold medal is the ultimate prize that athletes strive for at the Olympics. This is motivation enough for the athletes to dedicate the amount of time and effort they do to obtain this prize, but have you ever wondered whether they receive anything more than the gold medal? Perhaps monetary compensation?
It is important to note that the Olympics began as a tournament to showcase amateur athletes, therefore there was no intitial financial compensation. The Olympic committee still does not specifically give out money for winning or participating, “However, there are these things called “Olympic medal bonuses,” which are monetary prizes awarded to Olympians by the countries they represent. So basically, if you win, your home country will fork over some congratulatory money,” says Cosmopolitan.
Oxford Economics estimated that the value of each gold medal is roughly a whopping R18,763.60, excluding the piece of the Eiffel Tower that is in the center of each medal.
As stated, each country pays its athletes based on their financial capabilities. A report by CNBC states that Singapore awards any athlete who wins gold an estimated R13,457,546.30 once converted, whereas the United States awards R675,453.50 to each athlete.
The South African prodcaster SABC Sport reported that the leader of The South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (SASCOC), Barry Hendricks revealed that each gold medalist will receive R400 000, plus R100 000 for their coaches, while silver medalists will earn R200 000 and R50 000 for their coaches, and bronze medallists will get R75 000, and R25 000 for their coaches.
“As I mentioned this is the first batch, there are other bigger squads such as the women’s rugby and so on. So, for us this is an exciting time because this is now where we can really build the hype and the buzz around Team South Africa in the build-up to the Olympics,” Barry says.
Also see: Recap of the first weekend of the Olympic Games for SA
