Bad Takes: If the U.S. values its Olympic athletes, they should receive a living wage (2024)

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Shutterstock / Anders Riishede

Plano native Asher Hong is among the Texans competing in the Paris Olympics.

Sport has the power to unite people in a way that little else does. It speaks to youth in a language they understand. Sport can create hope, where once there was only despair. It is more powerful than governments in breaking down racial barriers. It laughs in the face of all types of discrimination. The heroes standing with me are examples of this power. They are champions and they deserve the world’s recognition. — Nelson Mandela, 2000

No stranger to symbolic nativist displays, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott recently gushed with praise for Olympic athletes who hail from Texas. Midway through the summer games, he’d already posted to social media a half dozen times exulting the inspiring accomplishments of athletes including Plano native and gymnast Asher Hong and University of Texas at Austin senior Luke Hobson, who took home bronze in 200-meter freestyle swimming. As Simone Biles, a native Texan, shared the gold with her teammates, Abbott trumpeted her as the “most decorated US Olympic gymnast in history.”

“Texas is well-represented at the Olympics this summer. We have the 3rd-most athletes competing among the states,” Abbott tweeted a day before events kicked off in Paris. “Texas is proud of you all. Good luck!”

Well said, Gov. In all, 41 Olympians from Texas are representing the United States in the 2024 games. And aside from sharing an inane piece of culture-war clickbait about an alleged mockery of Leonardo da Vinci’s The Last Supper during a drag queen-bedazzled opening ceremony — c’mon, it’s Paris, France, not Paris, Texas — Abbott’s focus on rooting for the home team provided a brief respite from his usual hyper-partisan nastiness. It provided a much-welcomed breeze of cool civil air.

A bipartisan consensus ought to emerge, however, that when it comes to our country’s non-symbolic support for Olympic athletes, we’re not putting our money where our purported patriotism is.

In an excellent article, Houston Chronicle sports reporter Danielle Lerner informed unaware readers like myself that “unlike most countries, the United States does not provide government funding for its Olympic and Paralympic committee.”

Even though the “American sports ecosystem frames the most visible professional athletes as wealthy titans,” she wrote, “the majority of Olympic sport athletes, particularly those in niche individual disciplines like wrestling, cycling and fencing, often have to borrow money or work odd jobs to make ends meet while chasing their dreams.”

Her interviews revealed that one cyclist lived in a van, while a boxer picked up cash working as a birthday clown and a taekwondo fighter delivered food to make ends meet.

To be sure, 54% of these high-performance athletes make less than $50,000 a year, and more than a quarter of them earn less than $15,000, according to a 2024 report from the Congressional Commission on the State of U.S. Olympics & Paralympics.

Since nearly half of the athletes earn no net compensation, the Commission found “many of America’s most talented athletes must pay for the privilege of competing under our flag.”

“You feel what you’re doing is not worthy in the eyes of whoever, anybody, to get paid for what you’re doing,” Houston-based fencer Courtney Hurley, who won bronze in 2012, confided to Lerner.

You can’t eat applause, after all.

“Some of the most talented competitors go to sleep at night under the roof of a car or without sufficient food or adequate health insurance,” the Commission reported. “Leaders tasked with overseeing movement sports have instituted policies that prioritize revenues over the development of their sports and the well-being of those they are meant to serve. The current system promotes near-term incentives for medals over equitable access to sports by millions of Americans. In nearly every case, the losers have been the athletes.”

Hopefully, the XXXIII Olympiad will light a torch under the asses of those very leaders. Even those who are flyweights in common decency should grasp that “[y]ou get better performances out of us when we have less to worry about,” taekwondo fighter and silver medalist CJ Nickolas told Lerner.

Of course, none of this is to present the Olympics in rose-colored hues. The funny people at left-leaning YouTube podcast Some More News recently laid out the ongoing history of the games as a corrupt, environmentally unfriendly, human rights-abusing juggernaut.

“They’re bad for the place they’re held, bad for governments, bad for human rights and bad for the entire world,” host Cody Johnston lamented. “But despite everything I’ve said, I’m actually not suggesting that we do away with the Olympics.”

Except, he added, “We don’t need to embark on billions of dollars in new construction projects just so 1,000 people can watch a beach volleyball game. Even if the Olympics remains at its current gargantuan, carbon-belching scale and continues terrorizing our greatest world cities like a fit, inspirational kaiju, the International Olympic Committee could still make a huge difference simply through more accountability and better enforcement. Either the Olympics reforms itself and actually gets better, or it just becomes such a trash factory that we stop having them.”

That would be an incalculable loss for all involved. Channeling our rivalry, chauvinism, and aggression into noble exhibitions of human excellence heralds a day when every battlefield will be replaced by a playing field.

But if you don’t want to take care of the soldiers, don’t start the war — even if by other means.

No worker should be “constantly worrying about making a living wage,” as Lerner aptly put it — especially not those whose Herculean efforts and fanatical dedication offer an uplifting example for us all.

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Bad Takes: If the U.S. values its Olympic athletes, they should receive a living wage (2024)

FAQs

Does the US pay for athletes to go to the Olympics? ›

Unlike most countries, the United States does not provide government funding for its Olympic and Paralympic committee. Athletes and their families often shoulder the lion's share of costs for equipment, travel, personal coaches, and membership and competition fees. Some work side jobs to earn additional income.

Do Olympic athletes get paid if they win? ›

Additionally, through "Project Gold," run by the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee," U.S. athletes get $37,500 for winning a gold medal; $22,500 for silver and $15,000 for bronze, according to the Associated Press.

How do Olympic athletes make a living? ›

Instead, their income comes from a mix of sources, which can vary widely depending on the athlete and their sport. One of the most straightforward ways Olympians can earn money is through medal bonuses. For example, in the United States, athletes receive: $37,500 for a gold medal.

How much does a US Olympic athlete get paid? ›

For instance, the US Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC) pays its gold medal winning athletes $37,500, $22,500 for silver and $15,000 for bronze.

Why don't Olympians get paid? ›

While the medals are highly sought-after accolades, receiving one doesn't come with any financial bonuses directly from the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the organizers of the Games. This is because the Games originated as an amateur competition intended to champion athletic success and the spirit of sports.

Who funds U.S. Olympic athletes? ›

Team and individual sponsors help pay for training and competition travel, stateside and abroad, along with fundraisers. National governing bodies − such as USA Track and Field − and the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee also can provide stipends to athletes to help offset costs.

Who is the highest paid Olympian? ›

Highest paid athletes at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games (in million U.S. dollars)
CharacteristicEarnings in million U.S. dollars
Jon Rahm (Golf)210
LeBron James (Basketball)127.7
Stephen Curry (Basketball)101.9
Giannis Antetokounmpo (Basketball)100.8
9 more rows
Aug 9, 2024

Does China pay their Olympic athletes? ›

Local governments across China reward Olympic athletes with cash bonuses - Global Times. Several regions in China are celebrating their Olympic athletes' successes by awarding cash bonuses to them and their families, following their impressive performances at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

How much does Simone Biles make a year? ›

How much does Simone Biles currently earn? According to data from Sportico, Biles was the ninth-highest earning female athlete in the world in 2023. She made about $8.5 million before taxes and any agent fees. Tennis stars dominated the list of biggest earners.

How much is a gold medal worth? ›

Market Value

Generally speaking, Olympic gold medals could sell for anywhere between $30,000 - $74,000, but there are a plethora of factors that influence their actual value.

How much does the US pay for a gold medal? ›

How much do Team USA athletes get paid for winning an Olympic medal? The payments offered through what the USOPC calls "Operation Gold" are unchanged for 2024. Athletes will earn $37,500 for every gold medal in Paris, $22,500 for every silver and $15,000 for each bronze.

What is Usain Bolt salary? ›

Bolt's current Puma deal nets him more than $10 million annually and includes bonuses for records and medals at major competitions. The Puma deal helped push Bolt's total off-track earnings to an estimated $30 million over the last 12 months and No. 32 among the world's highest-paid athletes.

How much money do Olympic swimmers make? ›

Olympic Swimmer Salary
Annual SalaryMonthly Pay
Top Earners$59,000$4,916
75th Percentile$48,000$4,000
Average$45,110$3,759
25th Percentile$39,000$3,250

Are Olympic athletes professionals? ›

By the early 21st century the Olympic Games and all the major team sports accepted professional competitors. However, there are still some sports which maintain a distinction between amateur and professional status with separate competitive leagues. The most prominent of these are golf and boxing.

How much money do the Olympics make? ›

Income for the latest four-year cycle of Winter and Summer Games ending with the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 was $7.6 billion. The IOC says it returns 90% of its income back into sports, although athletes directly get only a small slice.

Does the US subsidize Olympic athletes? ›

Help Through the Team USA Fund

The United States is one of the only countries with an Olympic Committee that is not supported through federal government support. Instead, the U.S. Olympic Committee relies on private funding. The Team USA Fund helps underwrite expenses for Olympic athletes, coaches, and more.

Do you get paid for going to the Olympics? ›

Olympic athletes are not paid. However, they have the opportunity to earn money in other ways that can make their respective Olympic careers extremely lucrative (as we'll explain later). The International Olympic Committee embraces values-based ethics and has never sought to incorporate a for-profit business model.

How do US athletes get to the Olympics? ›

Games Qualification and Selection

National Olympic Committees – such as the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee in the United States – earn national quota spots to compete at each of these international, multi-sport events, which are then allocated to individual athletes and teams.

How much does the Olympics cost the US? ›

Costly Infrastructure

The cost of hosting the Olympics has varied massively in recent years, from Sochi's $59.7 billion to Salt Lake City's $2.9 billion (2021 USD). 🇺🇸 U.S. 🇺🇸 U.S. One of the biggest costs associated with hosting the Olympics is infrastructure.

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