On the crest of Olympic heights: how monetary rewards shape attitudes towards sports in different countries (infographic)

Victory at the Olympics, in addition to world recognition, brings athletes a lot of money. There is no single established practice in this matter. Each state has its own traditions. Each country pays tribute to its Olympians at its own discretion, resorting either to a one-time incentive or supporting athletes systematically.
During the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, many countries offered significant cash rewards to their athletes for winning medals. And some of them were particularly generous.
For example, Hong Kong offered about $768,000 for the gold medal, the largest payout in the world. Singapore was ready to pay its winners $745,000, but the athletes were unlucky: the team did not win a single medal. Taiwan motivated the Olympians with an amount of $609,000. Meanwhile, Israel offered $275,000 for gold and $192,000 for silver. In Serbia, in addition to monetary rewards, athletes were offered a national pension, which begins to be paid at the age of 40.
Ukraine also offered its athletes generous rewards: for a gold medal – about $125,000, for silver – $100,000, for bronze – $80,000. There are also countries where payments to Olympians look like purely symbolic incentives – Denmark and Tajikistan offer about $14,000 for medals, Australia – $13,000.

At the same time, athletes from Great Britain do not receive direct monetary rewards from the government for medals won at the Olympic Games. Intangible motivation works here – participating in the Olympics is an honorable thing in itself. In addition, British athletes can receive bonuses from sports organizations such as British Athletics, which runs the athletics team. These bonuses are not state-owned, but can significantly support athletes after their success at the Olympics.
In addition, the UK invests heavily in the preparation of athletes for the Olympic Games, which includes funding training, equipment and other necessary resources to achieve success in competition. The British government believes that athletes should be provided for during their sports career, and not only after successful performances at the Olympic Games. It also helps create a fairer system where every athlete gets an equal opportunity to develop, regardless of whether they win a medal.
In Norway, Iceland, Sweden, medalists also do not receive direct monetary rewards, but they are provided with significant support before the start of the competition to ensure a successful performance at the Olympic Games.
Such awards not only motivate athletes, but also reflect the economic and cultural policies of various countries regarding the support of sports.

At the same time, in the conditions of war, the question of the expediency of large payments to athletes arises. Perhaps it is more appropriate to redirect these resources to priority social projects, rebuilding energy infrastructure or defense spending? Discussions around these issues continue in social networks. Users, in particular, write: “Is it from the country’s budget that they pay so much money for medals at a time when the country and the military are bleeding?” However, the majority supports financial incentives for our athletes.
“This is at least honestly earned money, and a very hard way at that. They raise the international reputation of the state. Instead, there are many corrupt people from whom money can be squeezed, and many scumbags who receive salaries in state institutions without doing anything useful, including in the Armed Forces. Moreover, the athletes will later spend this money on themselves and on drones.”
“Sport is a great way to remind yourself of yourself on the world stage. Therefore, athletes should be motivated to win.”
“Destroying a country’s development through war seems good today, but in the long run it’s the worst idea.”
“If this money is used within the country, then most of it will return to the budget due to taxes.”
“You would listen to how much attention commentators in the USA, Great Britain and other countries pay to Ukrainian athletes. It is constantly mentioned what difficulties our boys and girls had to go through. Right now is very timely.”
“You simply have no idea what sports and the Olympic cycle are at the age of 4. These are not people from the street who were picked up on the bus to Paris. And if even one Olympics is missed, eight years of sports, almost one generation of teenage children, are lost.”
As we can see, people generally support athletes, recognizing the importance of their contribution to raising Ukraine’s international status and motivation for new achievements. In general, the support of the Olympians is perceived as an investment in the image and morale of the nation, which is important even in periods of the greatest crises and upheavals.
At the 2024 Olympics, 329 sets of medals were drawn in 32 sports. Ukraine presented the smallest number of athletes in its entire history of participation in the Olympic Games.