how do olympic athletes make money
Olympic athletes can make good money, but most don’t get rich—and many juggle side jobs just to keep training.
Quick Scoop: How Olympic Athletes Make Money
Think of an Olympic career as a patchwork of income streams. A tiny group earns millions; a huge middle tries to break even; many quietly struggle behind the highlight reels.
1. Prize money and medal bonuses
There’s no global Olympic salary—each country decides how (and if) to pay its medalists.
- Many national Olympic committees pay medal bonuses (e.g., tens of thousands of dollars for gold, less for silver and bronze).
- Some federations and private funds add extra bonuses for specific sports, like wrestling or swimming.
- Outside the Games, athletes earn prize money at world championships, Diamond League meets, World Cups, and other pro events.
- In some sports (track, swimming, gymnastics), non‑Olympic competitions can pay more consistently than the Olympics themselves.
For many athletes, those bonuses are “spikes” of income, not a stable paycheck—great if you hit the podium, useless if you finish 5th.
2. Sponsorships and endorsements
This is where the biggest money is—but it’s heavily tilted toward stars in popular sports.
- Brand deals with shoe companies, apparel brands, watch makers, etc., can pay from modest stipends up to millions annually for global stars.
- Athletes sell image rights : social media posts, ad campaigns, appearances, and commercials.
- Some athletes invest or co‑found businesses (gear brands, clothing lines) that grow into major income sources.
- Social media has become a real revenue line: sponsored posts, long‑term brand partnerships, and creator programs can add tens of thousands per year for mid‑level names.
A handful of Olympic champions in high‑visibility sports live like mainstream celebrities; a far larger group signs small, performance‑dependent contracts that can be cut if results dip.
3. Stipends, government funding, and federations
A lot of the “bread and butter” money is more like a scholarship than a salary.
- National Olympic committees and sport federations give monthly stipends to top athletes to help with basic living and training costs.
- Amounts vary wildly: from just a few hundred dollars a month up to a few thousand for world‑class veterans.
- Some countries treat top Olympians as state employees (military, police, or government sports programs), providing stable pay and benefits.
- Federations may cover travel, training camps, medical care, physio, and coaching , reducing how much athletes must pay out of pocket.
These stipends rarely make anyone wealthy, but they can be the difference between “can train full‑time” and “must work nights to afford rent.”
4. Jobs, side hustles, and “real world” work
A surprising number of Olympians still work what look like regular jobs.
- Many take part‑time or flexible jobs (teachers, engineers, baristas, office workers).
- Some join corporate programs that pay a full‑time salary but allow reduced hours so they can train and compete.
- Coaching is a huge one: running camps, private lessons, online training plans , and youth clinics.
- Others string together speaking gigs, brand events, MC roles, and local sponsorships with small businesses.
Many athletes describe living paycheque to paycheque, constantly doing income math around rent, plane tickets, and physio bills.
5. Content creation and personal brand
In the 2020s, building a personal brand is almost a second sport.
- Athletes earn from YouTube ad revenue, TikTok creator funds, Instagram brand deals , and occasionally podcasts or newsletters.
- As follower counts grow, so do rates per post and the size of multi‑month or multi‑year contracts.
- Some offer paid communities, training programs, or digital products (ebooks, courses, templates) tied to their expertise.
- The trade‑off: more time filming, editing, and posting on top of an already brutal training schedule.
One mid‑level Olympic runner, for example, reported earning tens of thousands of euros per year from social media partnerships alone once their audience passed the tens‑of‑thousands follower mark.
6. Crowdfunding, donations, and family support
Behind many Olympic stories is a quiet network of people footing the bill.
- Athletes run GoFundMe campaigns or similar fundraisers to cover travel, training camps, or world‑championship qualifying events.
- Friends, family, and local communities contribute through donations and fundraisers (dinners, raffles, bake sales, local sponsorship boards).
- Some athletes join platforms that let fans buy personalized messages or shout‑outs , adding a bit of income between bigger contracts.
These sources are unstable and emotionally heavy—asking for help is not easy—but they’re often what keeps dreams alive in niche sports.
7. After the Games: leveraging Olympic status
The Olympic label can turn into a long‑term career if an athlete plays it well.
- Speaking engagements at companies, schools, and conferences, where “Olympian” on the bio boosts appearance fees.
- Coaching businesses or high‑performance academies built around their expertise and name recognition.
- Media and entertainment : commentary roles, reality TV, acting, and TV advertising.
- Some athletes move into sports administration, marketing, or entrepreneurship , using the discipline and network built over their careers.
A few parlay Olympic fame into full‑blown brands; many others carry it as a respected line on the résumé while building a more conventional post‑sport career.
8. The reality: a wide income gap
From the outside, it can look like all Olympians are financially set. The reality is more uneven.
| Type of Olympian | Typical income picture | Main money sources |
|---|---|---|
| Global superstars in big sports | High six to seven figures in peak years, but depends on performance and media appeal. | [3]Major endorsements, prize money, appearance fees, business ventures. | [3]
| Top‑10 athletes in mid‑profile sports | Often modest middle‑class income, fluctuating year to year. | [7][3]Federation stipends, moderate sponsorships, prize money, coaching side work. | [7][3]
| Olympians in niche or judged sports | Frequently part‑time workers, sometimes close to paycheck‑to‑paycheck. | [7][1]Small stipends, local sponsors, jobs, crowdfunding, clinics. | [1][7]
| Hopefuls and fringe national‑team athletes | Often little or no direct sport income; rely heavily on work or family support. | [1][3]Regular jobs, family help, small grants, occasional prize money. | [1][3]
9. Forum and “latest buzz” angle
In recent forum and social chatter, a few themes keep popping up:
“I always thought they were loaded. Then I found out my country’s national champion still works retail to afford training.”
“The medal money sounds huge until you realize it has to cover years of expenses and might only happen once.”
Common discussion points include:
- Whether federations should provide minimum living wages for all Olympians.
- If social media has made things fairer (more direct fan support) or more exhausting (constant content grind).
- How athletes in new Olympic sports (breaking, skateboarding, surfing) are piecing together income from culture, entertainment, and brand partnerships.
- Frustration that huge broadcasting and sponsorship deals at the Olympic level don’t always trickle down to the athletes themselves.
As Paris 2024 and the following cycles showed, the conversation is shifting from “glory at any cost” toward “how do we make an Olympic life financially sustainable?”.
TL;DR (bottom)
Olympic athletes make money from a mix of medal bonuses, sponsorships, stipends, jobs, coaching, content, and crowdfunding—but only a tiny elite gets rich, and many quietly grind to stay afloat.
Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.