Why Olympians Are So Broke | Big Business

[@gummy5862]

This is why most athletes in "niche" sports seem to always have a supportive, loving family. A big portion of their livelihood as a world class athlete depends on their families' assistance to make their dreams possible.

[@fauxdauteur]

You are absolutely correct. That's like an unspoken requisite right there. You can be a kid with the biggest dream in the world to win an Olympic gold medal for this country, but without a supportive family or connections, it's virtually impossible. That is probably why the majority of participants of these niche sports are white and live in neighborhoods where something like fencing or archery classes are readily available.

[@tenkowski]

One super supportive family member can make all the difference for a young athlete to grow into an Olympian, it's incredible. A whole supporting family is even better.

[@aaronalegria1239]

@@fauxdauteur seems to be a reason to provide that for your kid..

[@jca66]

@@fauxdauteur I was just having this exact conversation with my wife. It true that a lot of talent goes un realized because of hardship.

[@Steven-ro6os]

@@fauxdauteur Where are fencing and archery classes "readily available" anywhere? The vast majority of participants are going to have to travel to seriously partake in these sports. Also, the reason the sport is niche is because almost nobody partakes compared to other sports, not really because of racial barriers. Black people aren't even underrepresented in fencing. in Rio, they had 5/24 =20% black vs ~18% of the population overall being black. The USA track team and basketball team are very over represented with regards to black competitors. So much so, that just across those those disciplines, they right about make up the ~18% representation in the US Olympic team that would be normally seen in society. Seeing as they aren't really being paid, socioeconomic opportunity doesn't seem to be the hindrance in this case. So, black people are actually over represented in the US Olympic team. Like I said, it's culture more than anything else. Hockey is a Canadian dominated sport. Archery is an Korean dominated sport. Distance running is a Kenyan/Ethiopian dominated sport. Trail running is a European dominated sport. That's just the way the cookie crumbled with regards to the sports people chose to partake in. Getting into any sport and being able to compete at the Olympic level requires a high amount of privilege and money, especially in sports like track (especially sprinting and running events), boxing, and basketball, which are undeniably HUGE in black culture, are gear dependent, require local access to a track/gym/court, and have very high incidence of injuries when compared to other sports (which entails more being spent on physio/massage therapy/medication/surgery/etc). That's not to say that there aren't additional barriers for black people in society, but rather that this doesn't seem to be the issue in this case... at all.

[@yuchenwang679]

Imagine getting food delivered to you by a gold medalist

[@stardog2779]

Yea kinda sad and cool at the same time

[@chrisiver8506]

More like fourth place. "Sorry dude you didn't get a medal here's 5 bucks" lol

[@vince5127]

Well if I was a cyclist I would deliver food on my bicycle hahaha

[@vijayadwivedi5904]

Shameful it would be

[@kki1707]

I'd tip n treat them exactly the same as any other person doing the job.

[@jetpham3079]

Now we see another reason for why so many winners end up just bawling their eyes out....cuz now they can finally pay back their parents cry

[@GrammaDhan]

Exactly..look at when Jamaicans win there first medal..elaine for instance ..others cried for not being able to get a medal in the finals

[@TubesForNoobs]

@@GrammaDhan yeah because they suck, in comparison to the person on top atleast. Sports is a cutthroat business, only the best will ever make it.

[@dakotajackson3345]

@@TubesForNoobs bro if u don’t win the Olympics u don’t suck wtf 💀

[@TubesForNoobs]

@@dakotajackson3345 who is the US 5th fastest runner this season? I bet you’re gonna have to google it, but I bet you can tell me all about the gold medalists, why is that? Because people only acknowledge the winners. It’s simple and when I say they suck I mean in comparison to medalists

[@edwardspencer9397]

India is so devoid of medals that any medal winner is assured at least $10 million USD in cash prizes and sponsors. A gold medal can earn you upto $20 million USD.

[@veevee411]

I like that they highlighted the USA Women’s Water Polo team. They just won their third CONSECUTIVE gold medal in Tokyo, and Maggie Steffens is the top scorer in Olympic WWP history. She is a living legend of the sport at only 28. For them to be earning so little while being literally the best in the world is a travesty.

[@cassidyg]

YES GO WATER POLO!

[@AnthonyDavis-kh7zd]

How much money do you think women’s water polo brings in lol

[@adampalmer5399]

I agree the 2 sports that I always follow is Water Polo & Beach Volleyball 🏐

[@KimeramonRocks]

It is kind of because nobody cares about water polo and it is one of those sports that you can't even play unless you go to a high school that has a pool (only ones I know of in Kentucky are private Catholic schools for example) and... I don't even think I get a channel on TV that airs water polo. Water polo is just too niche to bring in the viewers. Well diving and swimming bring in viewers but only for the olympics... well thats true for most of the olympic competitions... perhaps they can earn more money if they play in the water polo version of the NBA/NFL, etc.

[@rem145]

Water polo and the volleyball players. They went through a lot to make it. Someone should notice this

[@FinancialShinanigan]

Like essential workers, Olympians get paid with cheers and claps.

[@chelseagirl278]

That doesn’t pay the bills

[@chelseagirl278]

@Bipin Bhartola that sarcasm hurts Olympians

[@notahotshot]

@@openmind2546 "Any job is essential to the person who depends on it..." Yeah, but that doesn't make them an essential worker. Essential worker specifically refers to those who are essential for the continued functioning of society. Fire and Rescue, Medical workers, transportation workers, farmers. These are essential workers, because they provide services that are essential to society. Fast food workers, hair stylists, barbers, movie theater employees, are not essential workers, even if those jobs are essential to the individual, because these services are not essential to society.

[@josiev9906]

Play a sport that generates revenue and you won’t have a problem

[@eidokun]

So true 😕

[@paolabueso]

I’m so glad people are talking about this situation. It’s super tough for these amazing athletes.

[@tomservo5007]

so what ? They don't sell tickets consistently

[@AngryBerb]

@@tomservo5007 You must have missed the part of the video where it said the CEO of the gymnastics organization makes 1.2 million a year. The money is there, but the athletes who do all of the work aren't getting any of it. There are no Olympics without athletes.

[@tomservo5007]

@@AngryBerb you think trainers, logistics is not work ? Without these people there would be no Olympics either

[@organizedchaos4559]

@@AngryBerb great, I hope your attitude of that translate to workers too

[@KarelKCZ]

@@AngryBerb Also in the video she says that in gymnastics there is a lot of money, but the small sports are what struggles the most which makes sense, you have to look at athletes as actors and sports as the movies they appear in, if you don't go watch that movie the actors wont get paid as much... who cares they are good at that sport if no one watches it... in the end they are there just to entertain people and Olympics continue just to make huge amounts of money from TV deals

[@ktchpmn]

So you're telling me that the Olympics, which effectively forces host countries to spend billions of dollars on new venues, is exploitive of the athletes? Color me shocked

[@deuscoromat742]

Please explain to me what about it is exploitative in nature. Exploitative relationships are parasitic. It is a 100% voluntary opportunity to internationally represent your country and there's a good potential to make a lot of money doing it. What you're talking about is a zero-sum game. Just because one side is benefited does not automatically mean that it is at the opposing party's expense.

[@thedarklord8770]

If the host country does not have enough resources to spend on venues they should not have volunteered to host the Olympics to begin with, nobody forced them to volunteer

[@spaceodyssey6004]

In India, Olympic Participants are fully sponsered and rewarded, and if they get a medal they get 6crore INR+ ie.60 million dollars+

[@sheshangajwalia4606]

@@spaceodyssey6004 I am indian as well, but you are certainly joking my friend. I don't think participants get this much. Not even winners. Govts offer them government job, which are ofcourse welll paid, but not at the extent you are saying. Some winners get prizes from businessman and companies. But it's not rule so not all get it. And not all who get it is not equal for everyone as well.

[@krishnana6948]

@@spaceodyssey6004 Bruh, idk where you get your faxx from but this is as wrong as it can be, "The Indian Olympic Association has set cash prizes of Rs 75 lakh for gold medalists and Rs 40 lakh and Rs 25 lakh for silver and bronze respectively" now 75 lakhs is not a small amount ($100k), now that source also states that, "However, that prize will be escalated by steep cash rewards being offered by several states to spur their athletes to medals at Tokyo Olympics" but that is no where near the amounts you are talking about.

[@ZhangtheGreat]

This is why I will never fault an athlete for "jumping ship" to another country to compete. If the other country can land the athlete the financial benefits (and security) they desire, go for it.

[@SquirrelStudioss]

you can not compete for another country unless you are a citizen there

[@WeekzGod]

@@SquirrelStudioss There are programs that fast track citizenship for athletes. Obviously not well known because they are effectively special deals. One offs not accessible to the general public.

[@blackken-jy9tf]

I mean who actually cares about the Olympics? Then it’s every 4 years. Then tbh some of the sports are niche asf.

[@anthosm]

​@@SquirrelStudiosssone countries will make you a citizen really really fast if you are an olympic level athlete

[@chocc9300]

This is why the UK does so well in Olympic medal tables of late. After a terrible performance in 1996 the UK government started funding our athletes and the teams around them with the profits of the national lottery meaning they can train full time, not have to pay for coaches and get paid for training

[@eamparbeng]

Yeah I can see how you're right. Team GB won like 1 gold medal at the Atlanta Olympics. Which was pathetic by their standards. So you're basically saying that the UK government realized "half of the reason why we didn't do good was our fault when we had the resources to train our athletes. So we won't let the same mistake happen again".

[@sigmastrong315]

Smart move

[@David-im5dt]

Some GB athletes have to fund themselves it’s not that easy here too

[@persebra]

"the teams around them with the profits of the national lottery.." ooooh, that makes sense to use a lottery! we should do something like that in the US.

[@danm4320]

@@persebra The lottery is a gamblers tax. It's the perfect way to fund things like the olympics where you went an independent fund to the treasury which doesn't have the same level of accountability

[@Just-SomeGuy]

The government be like, “thanks for giving our country all the glory and bringing in tourists to help make us money. Here’s a pat on the back.”

[@krodax3639]

How exactly does a gold medalist pony rider or whatever these sports are, bring glory or even tourists to a country? Your tax money is going towards funding these athletes passion, well my passion is traveling around the world, please pay for my trips with your tax money! Edit: I will even carry around a little swiss flag to bring fame and glory to my country!

[@jamiengo2343]

@@krodax3639 you don’t think Usain Bolt brought glory and recognition to Jamaica?

[@rajivkothur6407]

@@krodax3639 🤦🏻‍♀️

[@KRuStyKxng]

@@krodax3639 you have probably made the dumbest comment of the day.Congrats 🤡🤡

[@rickwar0]

@@krodax3639 You and I need to go bowling sometime. I love the way you think.

[@sarthakjain1824]

Damn i always thought they are well paid for representing their country and their hardwork

[@rooftopmunda]

Same

[@Xyz99899]

Not in the U.S.

[@williamcunninghammorrison3894]

@@Xyz99899 not in India either

[@avisheksinha7070]

Olympics is a sporting corporate. And we all know what happens in a corporate. The bosses drive Maybach.. and come down at the bottom to see workers (athletes here) struggling to survive. .

[@Sorcerers_Apprentice]

It's all or nothing. If you win and look good on camera, you can get multi-million dollar sponsorship and endorsement deals. If not, it's DoorDash and McDonald's gigs.

[@TheAwareHuman]

It’s incredible that USA earned as many medals as it did, if this is the level of financial support that is given to athletes.

[@dr.apollo4226]

Competition can do wonders, and there’s plenty of that in the US in every sector of society.

[@TheAxelBrown]

The USA also has much better access to facilities. Nowehere else in the world is there an abundance of athletics tracks like the USA with every college and loads of highschools having them. Same with pools and other facilities. Also the school system is pretty good for getting athelte's a chance to be recognised and get support. Combine that with a 300million population and there are bound to be plenty come through. Undeniably it would be better were there support for atheltes outside the main sports, especially in poor areas. But I compete in the UK, and was in an unfunded national program going to the Olympics, and yet had to move to a city just to find an atheltics track! So it's swings and roundabouts really!

[@BLKSHARK_43]

Silver medalists Raven Sanders works in a warehouse

[@waterproof4403]

@@TheAxelBrown forget track and and field. Especially road running

[@joesr31]

Scholarships from universities help as well

[@wkdhrgwiyagcgjne5547]

So you’re telling me the government gives out medal bonuses and used to tax on those bonuses?!

[@noname-bt9ky]

Bruh

[@noname-bt9ky]

Taxes are inhumane.

[@akindjustice]

@@noname-bt9ky I mean taxes are the reason we have roads, teachers, public parks, firefighters, and a whole lot of other important stuff but sure... inhumane... sure

[@organizedchaos4559]

You mean you have to pay taxes? Olympians need to learn what’s it like being a normal person

[@Rhea1381]

It's a lot like how it taxes unemployment. My state paid for my unemployment when I lost my job. Then my federal taxes came in and took 25%. (State didn't tax it). 25% of 1800/mo is brutal.

[@thLilJinx]

Yeah singapore pays 1,000,000 for gold, but I guess that's also because we've only ever had ONE gold olympian and that was in 2016. US on the other hand gets tons of gold medals every olympics

[@runninginsept]

I think it's a little embarrassing that we have once again emerged on top for all the wrong reasons. I'm not sure what the message is that we're sending with the 7 figures for gold medals. Our sports emphasis and awareness, on the national level, is appalling, even more so when considering the volume of foreign athletes we were once importing. As with many things in the country, the concern is with shine and splendour, no matter how hollow.

[@wedisegen]

I was just gonna mention that. Singapore awards the most money and they have yet to win any medals at the Tokyo Olympics.

[@some.generic.username5254]

India pays 3crore rupees for gold , 2 for silver and 1 for bronze , but again the same case , that not many are winning

[@sko1beer]

It’s not just about prize money places like USA and China Russia also offer there athletes proper couching jobs to produce more medals a proper jobs after retirement from the sport

[@rejectwokeness1314]

That's what the SG govt is good at doing. High headline figures to show they are benevolent but the whole infrastructure and sporting culture is appalling. The one gold Olympian owes his success to his family's financial and emotional support, not the country's development. The only paid Olympians are foreigners, as a local athlete you gotta find your own job and find time to train after that

[@MarkeithPriceOfficial]

This is the harsh reality. It’s tougher for Paralympic athletes to.

[@jimmybindra]

true, eh! One can imagine ..we feel you bruh!

[@ReverendKeven]

They get money from the government tho

[@ChillinHD]

@@ReverendKeven Disability checks? lmao good one

[@Rod.Machado]

no wonder why china is catching up with the quality of athletes, alot of unlocked potential in the US, steeered away due to lack of financial support.

[@KimeramonRocks]

china has those training facilities, unlike America, where the athlete basically has to pay for things out of his/her own pocket.. unless their job is literally competing (such as major league athletes or movie stars such as Chris Hemsworth) and they don't have "a main job".

[@Abhil295]

Inspite of that the US tops the gold medal tally in the summer Olympics. Big shout out to the US Olympians.

[@sto1238]

Yea they pay their athletes tons of money. They’ve pumped millions into their Olympic program

[@theraccoonasaur3282]

Probably because China has way more people

[@aena5995]

no its cuz of those crazy helicopter parents

[@jungookookie413]

I cant believe world class athletes from a country as big and prosper as the USA doesn’t get government funding. Even developing countries fully support their athletes at the Olympics.

[@DaBoss-lj8pn]

That’s great for us. Can’t believe there’s so many idiots who want to take money from homeless people to fund athletes

[@churblefurbles]

and they shouldn't, government wastes enough money already. A games which puts cities into massive debt spreading its damage across the world every 2 years isn't worth having.

[@yoonjeongsoo9378]

because there's no reason to. I personally think it's weird to support olympic athletes with government funding.

[@DaBoss-lj8pn]

@@churblefurbles I agree. I love the olympics but unless they don’t do it off of something other than taxpayer money, I can’t approve.

[@romiarkan450]

And it shouldn't have to be. For these athletes to make money off their own sports year round there needs to be competion that people have access to spectate. No need to wait until it's Olympics/World Cup/World Championship season for these guys to get paid if they have their own professional leagues to compete in. We just have to watch those leagues so these guys can get paid.

[@Kenny02120]

as a Team USA athlete for a small, unpopular Olympic sport (Canoeing) who has been trying to make the Olympics for the last 10 years, this hits really close to home. we make $0 from our NGB and Olympic committee because of how unpopular our sport is UNLESS you are on the podium. but how do you make the podium if you can’t make any money to support your training? it’s the ultimate catch 22

[@RK-bj8ho]

Can't you make money from canoeing classes, training service for kids etc .... just because you like some sports, govt should fund you is it ?

[@hsvxidhejdb]

@@RK-bj8ho true

[@Kenny02120]

@@RK-bj8ho some people coach on the side to make money. but the problem is if we train 8 hours a day and then you need to work 8 hours a day just to make enough money to break even, then include 2-3 hours for commuting and food - there’s no way to sustain that over time. a lot of athletes will try and work in conjunction with training, but the sad reality is 98% of athletes will not be able to have quality training sessions/reach their fullest potential as an elite athlete.

[@RK-bj8ho]

@Elias Håkansson the ad revenue belongs to who ? the host nation is investing billions in infrastructure ..... usually olympics are loss making events for the host nation and justified as PR / propaganda

[@wizzotizzo]

Damn.

[@leftright8724]

Unless you play for a major league(basketball, soccer, etc) or you are so dominant in your sport that you are able to attract major sponsorships and endorsements, you are not going to be a wealthy Olympian.

[@fanzhang5568]

Yeah it’s also a bit by design, since Olympics is meant for “amateurs”, in that sense the competitors should have other jobs and careers out side of the sport. But I feel qualified athletes should at least have their training related expenses paid.

[@spaceodyssey6004]

Yes

[@spaceodyssey6004]

In India, Olympic Participants are fully sponsered and rewarded, and if they get a medal they get 6crore INR+ ie.60 million dollars+

[@Thanos-hp1mw]

@@spaceodyssey6004 bruh 6 crores is only 1 million $. Probably even Micheal Jordan didn't get 60 million dollars in one go. Money doesn't fall from sky. Even Virat kholi or MS Dhoni don't earn that much money.

[@Thanos-hp1mw]

@@spaceodyssey6004 we don't reward olympiad who only participate. To get that ₹ 6 crore that is $1 million cash prize, the athlete must win at least a bronze. And we barely win the many medals anyway. That's why it's doable.

[@fun4me52]

The IOC should be paying the athletes. It’s no different than the NCAA making all that money off of the college athletes and not paying them. The IOC makes plenary of money but doesn’t pay their talent. It’s great if you can play a game and make money at it. If not, I have a hard time taking money that could be used for children or other necessities to give to athletes. If you are in business you need to make money. My mom has been a nurse for 50yrs and the government isn’t subsidizing her uniforms and foot massages, not to mention PPE during the pandemic.

[@wvu05]

@LTNetjak Indeed. The other major difference is that the IOC stopped prohibiting athletes from making money for their sport decades ago.

[@samplautz5586]

College athletes get to go to school for free. They aren’t paying over 100k to attend their school. That’s what a scholarship is

[@CL-fg5ne]

​@@samplautz5586not every Olympian gets a full ride scholarship...

[@aridddle]

​​@@samplautz5586 that's true for the kids that get a full ride athletic scholarship, however only about 10-15% on average of the athletes on said team will get a full ride athletic scholarship. Maybe another 25% percent will get some form of scholarship money, but it's rarely over 50% of the total cost to attend the school. The rest of them have to pay tuition like everyone else.

[@supingo3339]

In Slovenia every athlete that wins a medal at olympics or some world cup is litteraly considered a hero and gets sooo many sponsorships instantly.....for example Pogačar and Roglič in cycling and the baskedball team when they won the EuroBasked The ones that earn the most from sponsorhips here are mostly winter sports athlets because skiing and skijumping is really big around the Alps

[@elotabung]

this is how a nation suppose to treat their international hero

[@akshanshchoudhary7397]

Our only Indian gold medal winner in Javelin has till now got 2 million $ from different state governments and companies (not even sponsorship, just a gift). I am sure once he starts doing ad and sponsorship he will be worth above 5$M.

[@Rangayuthtube]

its different for countries like usa, then win 100's of medals, not that special

[@Headhunterzify]

I’m inclined to say that in Malaysia after you won a medal at the Olympics everyone wants to be your friend. I hate that not many athletes get to shine just ‘coz they’re too focus on athletes that got “lucky” at the Olympics.

[@TubesForNoobs]

Sponsorships are from private companies and that happens for almost every medalist everywhere. The ones who don’t make money are the ones who don’t medal or have no Promise. Athletics has always been cutthroat, if you’re not gonna be the best then don’t bother.

[@aksharsolanki328]

Imagine these players trying to make ends meet sustain injuries. Not only they have to pay for it but would even lose sponsors.

[@yugen3968]

& pay 50 grand for a CAT scan lol. It's risky getting injured in the US of A.

[@Dflowen]

@@yugen3968 it why part of their budget calculation goes to buying a health insurance. Also the lack of understanding what is and not covered will make your wallet a "lighter". Lol. Best thing.... "Don't Get Hurt" and you will be a-okay.

[@ttt9618]

@@yugen3968 here cat scan is like 200 dollars max.

[@yugen3968]

@@ttt9618 We have our own problems, like Docs are underpaid, but yeah. I get it for free, cz my mother works there lol

[@whwallfly3437]

Imagine people taking personal responsibility for their lives, not demanding a Fed Govt solve every human problem. Wow, sorta how USA was designed. Maybe read Federalist Papers and pay your own way in life?

[@Laurenafenete]

I saw the pile of sabre fencing kit and was like of course fencing is featured here Fencing is so expensive 😭

[@costanikols8]

Actually most of the over head cost for fencing comes from tournament costs and traveling. Like a full set of clothes of the best gear costs around $1000 which in comparison to other sports isn't to bad. You have some stuff that breaks (the fencing blades) but typically if you're fencing 5 to 6 days a week throughout the year you're only paying around $1000 for brand new equipment all including shoes blades gloves ect. A solid 70% of a person's fencing budget typically ends up going to club costs (coaching and paying for a specific gym to fence at) and traveling fees having to pay a couple hundred bucks for a plane ticket here then there.

[@Laurenafenete]

@@costanikols8 I know I fence

[@costanikols8]

@@Laurenafenete so do I, but saying the kit itself is what makes the sport expensive is kinda misleading. Fencing in relation to most other sports isn't that much more expensive in the realm of sports. Sports in general are expensive to compete in and singling out fencing just hurts the sports growth in a way where most people are just going to assuming that there's no way they'd be able to afford it.

[@Laurenafenete]

A lot of people can't its a hard sport to get into especially for beginners who want to really get into it e.g. buy kit, start competing, finding a local club In my og comment I was just commenting on the pile of sabre kit in the video I get exited when I see sabre featured its my weapon I would love more people to get into fencing especially sabre which isn't usually featured when there are general videos about fencing and do I still love fencing even with the drawbacks yes but I am definitely not going to hide the fact that fencing is a hella expensive sport and has multiple barriers of entry whether it's accessibility of local clubs, constantly buying kit because something broke or fie changed the rules or the travelling

[@113uineo]

@@Laurenafenete why kendo is not there in olympics ,fencing looks boring

[@pengfeidong5268]

It really sucks that world-class athletes aren't compensated for their greatness nearly enough, it always amazes me that some people can be the best in the world and on prime-time television and then go back to working a factory gig.

[@Fankas2000]

They are the best at sports no one cares about. Athletes that compete at sports that are poplar are rich. It's only the obscure ones that struggle.

[@TobyMacNewsboys]

Well, all it goes down to is viewership. Sports that have a lot of viewers, have opportunities for ads. Opportunities for ads mean that companies want their logo up there and are willing to pay huge amounts to the athletes for doing so. I dont think there is a particular problem in the funding of the athletes... sure the government could support them more, but in private business there just isnt demand for that. Think about it. How often do you see NFL/NBA/soccer/tennis on TV, vs how often do you watch long jump / javelin throw / womens 400m hurdles on TV? Inevitably, the track&field and less known sports are just not so interesting to watch, meaning less viewers, less sponsors and less money to the athletes.

[@dirtsapient9638]

No one gives a sh@t who is best in the world at picking their nose either. So they dont get paid for it. They are pursuing elective hobbies for their own amusement, nothing more.

[@katie-st8nx]

There are millions of homeless and you wanna pay people for jumping high? Dude.

[@TobyMacNewsboys]

@@katie-st8nx What the hell haha. In today's world, people get paid on how much perceived value they add to the society. A company CEO gets paid x € year, because he solves complicated problems, works under heavy stress and leads a company (lots of people) with a strong vision. Why should the money go to homeless? Im all about social support groups, good programs to get those people back on track... but the world just doesn't work that way. What if we took your salary and gave 50% away to a homeless? There are millions of homeless people and you wanna pay _____ for doing _____ job? Jeez.

[@rambutketiak]

I’m surprised US doesn’t have a support system for the athletes. In my country the athletes are considered civil servants so they do get paid monthly. And I admire countries like China and South Korea because they have athletes training center. So the athletes can focused on the training not worrying over food, home, clothing, coach, training area and wages.

[@guerillo4047]

Wait till you hear how the US treats it's military veterans 🤣

[@Konktg]

What country? In Greece only a handful of sports is considered as professional.

[@meowiguess903]

.

[@elotabung]

@@Konktg I'm guessing it's Indonesia

[@akmalnagib9725]

what country are you from?

[@RJKYEG]

I admire athletes who also have normal jobs, these are some determined people.

[@priyachoudhary9896]

Kinda scary for those who's career a comes to abrupt end because of injuries and scandals

[@BNK2442]

I admire more people who do voluntary work and have jobs.

[@jlee4039]

I also admire Nobel Prize winners, now those are some determined people. So… let’s stop funding science and technology research entirely and leave it up to the scientists to drive for Uber if they want luxuries like healthcare.

[@andii256]

for most of these athletes, it’s not that they’re determined or hardworking. if they don’t work, they literally have no money

[@Subhrajyoti]

@@andii256 that's what is determined they are for

[@Lily-mp2fb]

The olympics is the most rewarding non-rewarding thing ever

[@Tech-cy9yo]

The UFC

[@AlainPilon]

I think being a parent tops that. In both directions.

[@axia9294]

@@ratas258 china is the same way though- I mean I’m not defending America but China don’t give a shit about their Olympians

[@aliciam1646]

@@axia9294 But at least China has training facilities for their Olympians and their Olympians don't have to worry about paying training-related expenses.

[@axia9294]

@@aliciam1646 fair point

[@rayologyxm]

This is one of the reasons why I never continued on with my track and field career. I still love running a lot. But it definitely takes a lot of support that I didn't have at the time.

[@ceeprintz]

Updates??

[@rayologyxm]

@@ceeprintz I appreciate you wanting an update. I'm actually in process of training for Masters meets and a possible swing at the Diamond League at this age and stage of my life. My olympic and world champion opportunities are gone now....

[@esther3396]

@@rayologyxm wishing you the best of luck

[@rayologyxm]

@@esther3396 thank you so much

[@karencisneros2590]

It's really sad, but there's worst cases in countries where they don't even receive something if they win🤦🏻‍♀️ so... In general, please support olympic athletes, they deserve better.

[@Ra-Hul-K]

not just Olympic athletes but also budding athletes so they could rise up to become Olympians

[@cleofaspingarron]

In Cuba they get a worn tire sandwich and a pat on the back

[@malcontentmongreloid5486]

No, I will not support people that lie through their teeth about being on PEDs for a competition which is corrupt to its core and bankrupts cities. All olympians are liars and cheats, they can rott for all I care.

[@malcontentmongreloid5486]

The competition is a sham and you are delusional. "Karen" name checks out too

[@unlockedaccount]

like nigeria our government is useless

[@italotter]

As a side issue: the countries themselves go bankrupt trying to put on the Olympics that then doesn't get used much after.

[@Fatimaiqbal2006]

That's why no one really wants to host the Olympics anymore. A new structure needs to be built for every Olympics. I mean, they can just re-use the old ones but they don't.

[@wvu05]

@@Fatimaiqbal2006 Indeed. The whole reason why LA got awarded the 2028 Olympics early is because they and Paris were the only two cities left in the bidding for 2024, so LA agreed to drop their 2024 bid if the IOC would grant them 2028.

[@RichardColwell1]

Let’s take this moment to appreciate the athletes that went through this and still win Gold

[@bobaGogo]

Really depends on the sport. If you win gold in a popular sport like tennis, ur definitely not struggling financially. This is only a problem for sports that few people watch and generates little income. And besides, no one is forcing anyone to compete in sports. It's a choice pro's make, even though they know most athletes don't earn a lot.

[@harsha345155]

or silver or bronze or even qualification!

[@gabeguzman9478]

Its crazy how people like snoop dogg made like $500,000 off the Olympics and all these other celebrities are making profit off of this yet the actual athletes dont unless they win medals

[@bobbyv369]

Imagine being an athlete in an undeveloped country.

[@cwhiting]

They pay more than the us

[@indrajith2460]

@@cwhiting thats only if you consider the US a developed country. With all I've learnt about the US so far it seems like a glorified developing country

[@mauriciofuentes3763]

@@cwhiting they don’t

[@itgamingke]

@@cwhiting they don't

[@Redsoxking]

@@indrajith2460 okay hater

[@rid9160]

The title should be why Olympic athletes in the US are so broke🙄 I was shocked at first then realised it wasn't talking about athletes from my country.

[@borgerchainsaw1016]

well I don't think it's just the US, they are just talking to murican athletes

[@CA58CA]

What is your country?

[@nonec384]

i heard brazil didnt pay to and many work was driver , but yeh

[@MeMe-pj8ve]

Cool, bro. You get a C+ for video comprehension.

[@DKD76]

It is common in other countries too Except few

[@han06polo]

Olympic was such a beautiful way to show how human body can achieve in certain sports. But now all the historic and monumental spirit of THE Olympic is gone and turning into a business.

[@malcontentmongreloid5486]

Yes, what a human body on drugs 💉 can acheive, how beautiful. Open your eyes lol, they apprar to be closed.

[@sheiswhitney]

Olympics was and continue to always be about business, politics and diplomacy.

[@loritt3958]

@@malcontentmongreloid5486 the "apprar" to be closed

[@wakandaforever2401]

Since it's inception in Ancient Greece, the Olympics showcasing what the human body could achieve was only a facade to hide the business, and political stuff going on behind the scenes.

[@churblefurbles]

@@sheiswhitney its mostly about forcing cities into billions of dollars of debt now. People are making money off forced spending no one asked for.

[@lesliealvarez6958]

I’m so surprised and cannot believe how we still have a long way to go to treat these athletes. But I admire the commitment because they love what they are doing and moving forward.

[@lifetimeofaspeculator5966]

In Germany a decent chunk of our Olympians are officially in the army or police and get paid but don't really work in the army or police but get to train full time

[@trancemadmaz]

When will Germany be a great Olympic nation again? They have sucked in the last 4 Olympics compared to previous performances. They were so strong in the 90's winning 32 golds in Barcelona in 1992.

[@thomasgrabkowski8283]

@@trancemadmaz Germany was great in 90s, but suck now. In contrast, UK sucked in the 90s, winning 1-5 golds per Olympics, but since 2008 are one of the greatest Olympic nations. Germany gold medal trend between 1992 and 2016 went-33, 20, 13, 13, 16, 11, 17. By contrast UK went 5, 1, 11, 9, 19, 29, 27, to put that into perspective, and is expected to win more golds then Germany for the 4th straight games(currently 17 compared to Germany's 9), something unthinkable in the 90s

[@umarynium]

The same situation in Russia

[@pm6127]

It is similar condition in India.. most Olympians are from army..

[@21mozzie]

Once upon a time, Olympic athletes couldn't be professionals. If they had been paid to compete once in their life, they couldn't compete at the Olympics. My understanding (which could be wrong) is that the Russians conscripted all of their best ice hockey players into the Army, where they were officially soldiers, and after that the dam broke.

[@JS-pp7ll]

Who else found out this year that athletes don’t get paid ?!

[@PieEater]

I'm surprised people didn't know

[@tracy_cakkes]

I didn’t know this at all Idk why but I had this idea that they had a lot of money

[@tomservo5007]

JS, you can pay them

[@davidjoseph2360]

I would quit screw America

[@itoko05]

Me

[@martinebon4333]

That is the risk of being an athlete, you need to be either be from a rich family to support you OR be exceptional in your sport that you get sponsors willing to pay for your training. What shocked me is that the US are paying pennies to their Olympic medalists after giving honor to their country.

[@vertrex8062]

You shouldn't just put all the hate on the USA. As the video mentioned only two countries pay their athletes to represent them.

[@dontbanmebrodontbanme5403]

Just to drive home what you're saying even more, remember, every kid on this earth, at 5 years old, said, "I want to be an Olympian!!!" at one point. So parents shell out money to see if the kid is good. Great, the kid is good. Ok, let's go into debt to see how far this dream can go. What happens to the families that shell out hundreds of thousands of dollars, only to find out the kid is good, but not good enough to ever repay the money the parents spent? What happens if those parents aren't rich? I agree, I'm stunned that the US doesn't support their athletes more. It's amazing how many medals we win every year knowing this.

[@theimpaler98]

@@vertrex8062 Other countries subsidize costs of training. The US amateur sport system is pretty shit in comparison

[@Carson347]

@@dontbanmebrodontbanme5403 You lost the bet to be honest. If you needed to make it to a certain level to make bank and you didnt well hard luck. The thing is even if the US were to pay athletes just for qualifying that would not be enough to cover the years of work. At most the US would pay for the last year of training on top of some pay for qualifying. You would have been training towards other events that has nothing to do with representing the US so they would not see the need to compensated you pass a certain time. Its somewhat tricky but it can be done.

[@hypothalapotamus5293]

@@dontbanmebrodontbanme5403 Parents must be a role models for their kids. Going into debt to pursue a future that isn't going to happen is not being a good role model. Sometimes you don't get what you want. Other times, you don't really want what you thought you wanted. It's an important life lesson.

[@Cristian_is_saved]

I’m training for the Olympics and studied massage therapy and became a coach. Now I train myself , massage myself and I’m an entrepreneur. I’m going to be a self made millionaire by the time I reach the Olympics and now I’m getting the idea to sponsor more athletes. SVA strong village apparel is the shoe company. On the road to become a doctor as well.

[@Cristian_is_saved]

I couldn’t of done it without my family and friends.

[@jimmywise7726]

IOC is paid billions just for broadcasting rights alone, plus host cities spend billions of their own money on the venues. Does anyone know what expenses the IOC and the AOC incur that requires so much money?

[@abhishekahirrao4271]

Try using Olympic content in yt and see how fast it's taken down. Government seriously needs to analyse the money flow here and see if everyone's getting fair pay.

[@fenecofeneco19]

@@abhishekahirrao4271 why? You want to make money through female athletes bodies too,and you can't with olympic competitions?

[@TheFourthWinchester]

@@fenecofeneco19 tf is your response to that comment?

[@alexfrank5331]

@@fenecofeneco19 You bark at that but completely ignore the fact that real women are currently being abused and literally sold like real-life sex objects. For example, Jeffery Epstein's clients never got punished. They're just buying girls from different pimps now. Where's your protest and marches to get justice when it matters most?

[@ariengabriella]

I am wondering the same. If the host countries can't make money and most athletes can't make money and have to pay their own way there, I think the Olympics and the IOC need to be seriously reevaluated.

[@gabrieltanzh]

Singaporean here pitching my two cents! For context, the reason why i think singapore is pouring so much money into athletes, is really the nation's late realisation that we are quite far behind in sports talent development. In our country, people don't think sports is a viable career and usually will sacrifice it for a more "stable" career. As for prize money for winning the olympics, it is so absurdly high, partially because we hardly win any medals (in fact only 5 ever). When SG won it's first gold last olympics it was really a hugely proud moment! My guess is that USA has quite the opposite problem in that talent development and interest in sports is much more advanced, and thus a reward system the way SG does it will be unviable. Really hope as a global society we find a way to reward all these athletes appropriately with at least a living wage (not even asking for the millions that some earn)! Sporting meets/tournaments, and to me especially the olympics, are a HUGE source of inspiration and really show the best of the human spirit!

[@md-ayaz]

India has a similar model like Singapore. You need to show talent and win gold medals to get paid by govt. If anyone wins gold medal then govt notices him/her and gives him a reward and respect. Lot of big business man will reward him.

[@emekaakude6448]

So sad after all that much effort!

[@ferpz968]

olympians should get a little more recognizion finacial wise

[@SevenHunnid]

I get paid to smoke weed in my KZbin videos 🥶🥶💨

[@TRENDING-lk3ke]

@@SevenHunnid who tf are u 😂😂😂

[@mr-black-sheep]

They chose to make the effort.. paying someone to live his dreams is beyond me.

[@JuliusUnique]

but they have fun doing it, are you kidding me?

[@keyshia6909]

Those athletes deserve so much more . They’re amazing and they dedicate their entire lives to the sport .

[@RayLabs]

When I was competing in XC skiing in the late 70's/Early 80's I was lucky to be on a Trade Team which took great care of it's athletes (from around the world). Each year at pre season camps everyone had to go through PR training and know how to get as many of the sponsors of the team into a response to any question. There were companies that were tracking how often you were on TV or had a photo in a magazine/newspaper. If you placed well in a major race there was usually a Performance Stipend increase (since we were technically Amateur and not allowed to be "paid" but we could accept "Stipends" as we called it being a ShamAture). Today all that has dried up, I doubt I would have had the opportunity that I had if it were today. And I know this statement will draw some haters. But I hated anyone saying that I was competing for the United States. United States didn't pay me 1 cent. I was competing for my Trade Team and myself.

[@ZetaTJ]

I am from Spain, and two years ago I went to the north of Spain on vacations, and the girl who attended me at the hotel was an olimpic athlete for the Spanish badminton team. Simply amazing

[@abdulalhazred4224]

What? But, carolina marin is surely rich, isnt she? That wont happen in indonesia. If they r chosen to go to the olympic, they r rich (at least, have more money than many of us mortals 😁)

[@siddharthkhandelwal3161]

I genuinely felt really bad. This video is such an eye opener!

[@dha588]

I was waiting for this answer for years. This question was always in my mind. Thank you !!!

[@nicklovescoke2223]

But it doesn't have to be that way. Become a naturalized Singapore citizen and a gold medal in the Olympics gets you SGD$1 million. Just putting it out there.

[@vivac995]

that what i was thinking. but not many(I guess) have done it, so it's probably not that simple. especially when you're already in the national team, they prob in some kind of contract?

[@andii256]

sg doesn’t have world class sport facilities. athletes are likely to train overseas. so that’s gonna affect how long they reside in sg and in turn affect naturalisation?

[@alexfrank5331]

@@andii256 You don't need world class facility for track & field though...

[@ArjunSharma-gy1eq]

Due to low number of medalists from India, we treat all our medalists the best way we can. They are given price money ranging from 300k dollars to 1.5 million USD, which is huge amount in India (for a million USD you can buy 3 apartments of 4 floors each in India ). They also get a government job (they don't have to work but get regular fairly high income)

[@sagittario5543]

Yup, it's true for medalists. Even Neeraj Chopra who won the Gold medal for India this evening has the rank of Subedar in the Indian Army based on his past achievements in earlier international tournaments.

[@kaushalkhator9551]

But there is no proper infrastructure for the upcoming olympians. We don’t have sponsors for niche sports and for those who couldn’t won a medal this time.

[@ArjunSharma-gy1eq]

@@kaushalkhator9551 we have much more pressing issues so it is not viable to develop infrastructure for sports. Winning medals at Olympics doesn't helps the country in any significant way. People usually forget that sports are meant to enjoy instead of just seeing them as competitions. Village kids playing Gilly danda and rolling tyres, city kids playing in parks and people playing gully cricket enjoy the sports, they don't yearn stadiums cause they love the sport not the building and items associated with it.

[@downkosha3607]

Other nations like Singapore’s medal bonuses are so high because they barely win anything, while America in the other hand could easily win a quarter to sometimes half of the medals..

[@TheContrarian09]

I can’t remember the last time I’ve watched or even wanted to watch the Olympics. I imagine the views aren’t there; and in entertainment, if the eyes aren’t there, the money’s not there.

[@pradyuthbopanna214]

In India if an athlete wins a medal. They automatically get a high post in the government. This act really gives them a stable future ahead with a hefty salary and all the perks such as a residence, cars etc

[@meerali2921]

Too many lies!

[@adarshkumargm7819]

@@meerali2921 No it’s true! They get advertisements among others he mentioned.

[@santhoshanvelmurugan3324]

@@meerali2921 there is nothing lie , if anyone won medal in india then surely they will get job and money.

[@Baboi62182]

@@meerali2921 well India doesn't get many medals, so 3-4 people getting govt jobs isn't big.

[@amritsingh4251]

But the catch is barely any indians get any medals in the olympics

[@user-un8jx8yo7z]

I know everything isn't about money but sounds like most of them are living basically in poverty.

[@effervescent_smegma-s1w]

They have sugar daddies... don't ya notice have nearly all of them are hot now

[@KeliK1]

Singapore pays $1,000,000 for a gold medal, $500,000 for a silver medal and $250,000 for a bronze medal? Wow!

[@NiskyModifiedFB]

After a life time of training, it doesn't sound like much.

[@haroldgeernian9816]

Well its almost hypothetical since Singapore has won 1 gold medal and 5 total in all Olympics, which is why they can give so much money. Nations like the U.S. can't give that much because we get around 100 medals per Olympic Games.

[@SDZ675]

@@austinwffly2136 Just order 1 less F35 or 10 less Cruise missiles every 4 years.

[@johnl.7754]

Well USA doesn’t need to since it is doing fine (how many medals won each Olympics). Not saying it’s right though.

[@RomeoMike22]

@@NiskyModifiedFB if you doing it for the money there's something wrong with you

[@dansugardude2655]

I’d say it’s worth it for a while, but it eventually becomes imperative to get a more secure source of income.

[@alimfuzzy]

We had a guy in high school who was a state champion swimmer and kept bragging how much money he earns (That was BS) and how much richer he would be than everyone else (yeah, he was a dick). He could only attend high school half the time because he was always training. After High school never heard of him again. Hopefully he made it okay, but he never became a famous athlete.

[@spaceodyssey6004]

In India, Olympic Participants are fully sponsered and rewarded, and if they get a medal they get 6crore INR+ ie.60 million dollars+

[@felix-xd4mx]

hopefully he became a better person. it's not that bad though, dude can be a swimming coach or go on a business selling swimming equipments. it's not as "all or nothing", a lot of path is left in life besides ordinary office work. as long as you got a skill and the will, whatever it is, there is away

[@pnjodaro]

@@spaceodyssey6004 yeah that's when they qualify. Before that, the whole expense of training falls on the athletes. All the medals that we have got, is due to the financial involvement of the athletes "themselves". All the sponsorships and ads and money and what not, only comes after when they successfully qualify for the Olympics.

[@rohan_gupta]

@@spaceodyssey6004 u crazzy?

[@spaceodyssey6004]

@@pnjodaro yeah that's true, if you got the skill then you earn, it's as simple as that.

[@cam-lg2xy]

I’m dumb I read “why olympians are so broken”, suddenly I was so confused and concerned.

[@LEMATTOFFICIAL]

lol

[@FullMetalPower7]

thats true too, to an extent

[@cleofaspingarron]

LAWL

[@dancasia1245]

In the philippines many competetive athletes are either from rich family, mainstream sponsored sport(basketball and boxing) or military. Our first gold in olympics was from this year weightlifting an air force Sargent and the medal before that was a silver in 1992 from a navy private

[@rafaelperalta1676]

So true. Poor athletes, in general, have no choice but to give their dreams up of competing on a global level or giving honor to the country. Makes me wonder what things most poor athletes(especially those who devoted their careers in lesser known sports) do in order to even have a chance at competing in the Olympics. Manny Pacquiao and Efren "Bata" Reyes are among the few rare cases of rags to riches from our country and even then, they weren't able to participate in the Olympics.

[@adlirez]

And our gold medalist Hidilyn Diaz did what she did and is doing what she’s doing because she’s advocating for improved funding for athletes. Even here it’s pretty intense, more so if the athlete isn’t one of privileged background.

[@theimpaler98]

The corrupt ass government also accused her of conspiracy, don't get it wrong

[@FirstLast-dt5jk]

Did you even saw Diaz's training place? No it's not the comfortable gym. It was in a garage. She hadn't been home for 4 years (or so as i read). She had no one in foreign land, except for her coach. She can't even afford to sleep in any hotel for so long. Instead of being proud of her, yeah why not accused her of having the "privilege" and that's why she could win the medal... ㅡ.ㅡ

[@Baboi62182]

Why did I read it as navy pirate😄

[@aguerozeus9705]

We should be careful about money usage during this pandemic. if you're not spending to recover, then stop spending..

[@mohammedhassan9132]

The economy hardship, recession, unemployment and loss of job caused by covid pandemic is enough to push people into financial ventures......

[@meeknice3283]

I wanted to invest more on digital currencies crypto but the fluctuations in value always discourage me,,,,...

[@alenjoshua6620]

@@meeknice3283 that's why you need the help of a professional who trade and understand the market to earn good more income. These professionals understand the market like it's there own finances,!....

[@faustinoaxel5072]

it's surprising that people are so scared and discouraged by sudden drop in value, most crypto traders and investors are less knowledgeable about the dynamic of Crypto currency. "it's a time to be investing with Mrs Bella"....

[@newtonfabregas4389]

she is really good and awesome! Am shock someone mentioned and recommended expert Mrs Bella, I thought people don't know her....

[@diepieche]

Not only athletes broke, the country hosting Olympic also become broke. It's the new way to broke through in the name of sports.

[@jacobbaker4545]

This is another reason why ncaa should pay their athletes in addition to scholarships. They make everyone else money so they should be able to recieve a portion. No one should be paying tution while competing

[@zesolodar]

the problem with that is outside of football, basketball, and some places a sport or two most schools athletic programs loose money. someone published the profit chart from lsu athletics and the only sports that turned a profit were football basketball and baseball (barely) every other sport lost money. so you would be asking three sports to pay all their athletes on top of supporting and making it possible to keep said teams. sorry that dosent work. just like life you dont get paid when your not turning a profit for your company or institution

[@80z1r]

@@zesolodar The three big ball sports do not cover other sports cost. When students pay their tuition there is a student athletic fee included. I know this because it was a part of my tuition cost at Southern Illinois Univ. in the late 70's early 80's still charge it only much higher now. The so called money losing sports do not have television deals or charge a gate fee which makes a HUGE difference.

[@adam872]

I think NCAA athletes should be able to get outside funding, other than scholarships and I think that's that case now or being proposed?

[@srinidhiparashar165]

I can't believe this - we in India are always told US Athletes are very rich because of which they perform very well 🙏🏽

[@Hyper29921]

🤣😂

[@johnson305]

India pays its athletes far more for medals. The guy who won gold in javelin yesterday received over $1.6 million, albeit from different levels of government and states.

[@srinidhiparashar165]

@@johnson305 Yes absolutely true!!! But Infrastructure is almost Nill in India compared to US and Eurpoe

[@banksrail]

@@srinidhiparashar165 lol I wouldn’t be parading around the US infrastructure considering a Condo in Florida just collapsed not too long ago.

[@srinidhiparashar165]

@@banksrail please do visit Indian Training facilities once! I can say that only from past 4years or so it has improved!

[@MalenkyGoblin]

The German government allows their Olympians to serve in a branch of the military that gives them time and money to train. Considering the size of the US Olympic team's sponsors (Visa, Proctor and Gamble, Nike, etc.) they should be able to support the athletes financially so they can dedicate themselves 110% to training for the Olympics.

[@jarmangill5911]

Man its not easy being athlete and getting medal . Respect ✊🏽

[@nashefore1912]

This seems like an issue that goes way deeper than athlete pay. The Olympic financial structure needs a restructuring😓😓

[@dinogaming4419]

It's sad but not much can really be done. Nobody is gonna pay millions to sponsor a rower.

[@danceteacherrlb]

Or we could sponsor them since they're doing this to bring our country respect

[@dinogaming4419]

@@danceteacherrlb Sure but that's just not how the economy works. Someone could sponsor them I guess if they're prepared to lose money. It would have to be a pretty nice person.

[@vanderumd11]

@@danceteacherrlb nahh. Respect from who.. we have a military that handles that

[@deuscoromat742]

@@danceteacherrlb Can you think of a reason why? Because that's not a good reason. "we should give them lots of money because it makes me feel good". I'll tell you a secret, i'm not going to pay another Penny of taxes because someone wants to play games. Where do you think money comes from? So willing to spend everyone's freaking money. They have a gofund Me, feel free to donate your own money.

[@user-di5xq2ly2v]

What about using taxes

[@lzh4950]

Am from Singapore where I heard our rewards for Olympic medals are the world's highest, probably because it's rare to come by here (we were empty-handed at the Olympics between 1960 to 2008, for instance). Heard the father of swimmer Joseph Schooling, the country's 1st gold medalist (besides those won earlier in Paralympic swimming & Youth Olympic sailing), also ended up selling his business to fund his son's training, that included moving to the USA for studies (where there're more competition opportunities). Like him, many of our country's athletes juggle their training & competitions with academic studies (probably due to pragmatic financial concerns), which leaves them pretty busy & at higher risk of burning out e.g. Johnathan Chan (our 1st diver to qualify for the Olympics) was still working on his university's final-year/capstone project in the Athletes' Village a few hours before his Tokyo 2020 event, & had to be excused from his project's presentation to make it for the competition. With such pressures, him & quite a number of our athletes are retiring quite early from professional competitive sports i.e. in the mid-20s, after just 1 Olympics, which is a bit of a pity, though understandable.

[@TheKorusuk]

My understanding of UK athletes being paid is that it's mostly through UK Sport which in turn is funded by the National Lottery. The government does not directly fund UK athletes.

[@ImmersiveSportsScience]

Yep you are correct. There are some exceptions to the rules but almost all UK sport funded Senior athletes or TASS athletes are lottery-funded.

[@adam872]

And that lottery funding is a reasonable approach. Competition for taxpayer funding is fierce and it's hard to sustain a case for sport IMHO.

[@chocc9300]

The national lottery is state-franchised, so basically owned by the government. It's essentially a stealth tax. Since 1996 around 30% of its (considerably large) profits go to athletes, coaches, training facilities etc

[@TheKorusuk]

@@chocc9300 It's state-franchised but that's where government involvement ends. It's operated by Camelot. Your definition of a “tax” is a bit weird, too. You’re not required to do the lottery.

[@adam872]

@@chocc9300 The difference between that and a tax is that people freely participate in the lottery. Taxation isn't voluntary.

[@TheVision-gd7np]

So you have to be good enough athlete and have millions of followers on "social media"

[@MeMe-pj8ve]

Wtf why would you put social media in quotes? 😂

[@Nutty...]

And this is why some of them dope..

[@_Ekaros]

Like everyone else in modern influencer industry... Athletes are nothing special compared to any other social media star...

[@hypothalapotamus5293]

This is why Nick Symmonds started selling run gum.

[@SuccessforLifester]

I was giggling when Singapore was featured for its monetary rewards when the irony is that we are not known for doing well in sports

[@danieldelacruz7305]

The money to fund olympians should come from sponsors and the Olympic committee themselves. They need to do a special tax to sponsors so they can fund all olympians training, facilities and food expenses

[@some.generic.username5254]

Alternate title,"Olympians in the less famous sports are broke"

[@pierreharbin5415]

Yeah but that’s technically 80% of the Olympics, only 3-4 events get paid GOOD

[@rph8704]

@@pierreharbin5415 Those sports should be lucky to have any TV coverage at all. If it weren't for the olympics, the viewership for pole vaulting, canoeing, and fencing would be approaching zero

[@roybatty6368]

TRUE! Just be better at better sports!

[@maritsandvik7451]

RPH you do realize a pole vaulter has one of the biggest sponsorships in all of track and field right?

[@youmessedup7758]

@@rph8704 so ungrateful goddamnn bro they work there bodies 24/7 to provide entertainment that shitt would probably stress me to high hell id wanna get paid to wtf is up with you we could take just like a mili from our military funding and add more money for the gold medals each year I meann idrk how this shit worksss but there has to be a solution to make everyone happy 🤷

[@abec8211]

A lot of people in the comments are like: “We’re glad this issue is finally being brought up” Hey let’s watch water polo!: “ewww no thanks that’s boring!”

[@sauravsharma1229]

You can't use this kind of guilt argument for people to watch every single sport though.

[@SachiraBhanu]

@@sauravsharma1229 People are lying about their love for some sports.

[@cleofaspingarron]

They should display FrootLoops banners in water polo arenas. An McDonald's. Lots of McDonald's

[@shivamagarwal5789]

Yeah. Like I don't get it. This is my first time following Olympics so closely and I prefer to watch an undermined sport rather than the hyped ones. Feels so awesome to know such interesting sports exist.

[@TheTransitmtl]

I don't watch any sport but all top level athletes should not be financially insecure. Hopefully one day we will have UBI and humans will be able to reach their full potential

[@TomOostenrijk]

I think the multimillion earning for athletes in the popular sports are outrageous. It must suck to be the best in your field and make a 1000 bucks a month. But, that's just how it is. You can't pay athlethes well, if nobody watches your sport, and you can't really force them to.

[@jowellnim9459]

@Brian Peterson if you are training intensely for upwards of 8 hours a day, im pretty sure you dont have the energy to create lots of content for socials without it getting dull quickly if all you do is post your daily training routines

[@deathstar71]

@Brian Peterson they're not PR professionals. Jeez.

[@leiajiang7877]

This is why the popularity model the right uses against coplaining female soccer players is so invalid. Because peoplein America isn't looking at achievements but looking at popularity. Thats what kills peoples sprit to join other sports that help keeps America ahead in the sporting world. Of course i don't care, I'm team china all the way

[@TomOostenrijk]

I don't think the popularity model is a 'right' thing. It is just another thing feminists criy about. If noone watches your sport, viewership is down, sponsors stay away., there is just less money to go around. The same goes within the spectrum of the male side of sports. Some sports are more popular, so some men make less than others. Not to mention that in most, not all, sports, if you're in it to see the best of the best, you're probably looking at men. Not saying I necessarily like it, but it makes sense. Nothing 'right wing' about it.

[@naesklinger3060]

@@leiajiang7877 I realize this is going to go over your head but…. Sports are a business! If no one pays to see you play/compete then how are you supposed to get paid. You’re free to train and progress in your sport, but I’m not going to pay to watch you, nor is the vast majority. The reason these athletes are upset they don’t get paid much is aside from 2 weeks every 2 years (summer and Winter Olympics) what else do they do for me? Sadly it’s nothing…. Do you pay people you don’t know to do nothing for you? If you do you got bigger problems…

[@wt1272]

These stories are so important and eye-opening

[@ovh992]

The man stating that the USA is one of the few countries in the world that doesn't financially support Olympic athletes is dead wrong! Pretty much all of. Africa and South America do not pay for training. They may pay after an athlete wins a gold medal. The saying in the Olympics is "only the wealthy countries win at the Olympics".

[@habib6499]

algeria is an african nation and we pay our athletes and all Olympic athletes here live in one of the most expensive neighbourhoods and are very well off so it’s a very stupid thing to compare africa as a whole r/shittyamericanssay

[@felipedaiber2991]

"Only moderately rich countries that care win" I guess

[@bestkoi7555]

His statement is true. USA itself is not the one financially supporting athletes. The US government is not paying athletes. The Olympic companies are paying athletes.

[@ovh992]

@@bestkoi7555 my statement is that there are MANY countries that do not pay to train olympic athletes. Very few countries pay for athletes to train - basically communist countries are the only ones who pay for athletes to train.

[@daelbows5783]

​@@habib6499 Most developed countries don't support their athletes. The UK is one of the few that does. The US isn't alone. Countries like Canada and Australia also don't pay athletes to compete.

[@sushant6196]

If the developed countries atheletes are broke then imagine the athelete of underdeveloped countries.

[@wenacabrossoylacony]

Southamerican here, is basically the same, in here the only sport well paid is soccer, the rest have to find a way to pay they own bills. Even the world champions have to pay their own travels

[@ParuAp]

Only usa

[@cleofaspingarron]

Yes exactly. Cuban atheletes are fed old tires and still many of them make it to medals

[@secondnature4891]

Not really, here in Indonesia, we give these gold medalists around $700k each. And they'll basically become celebrities which guarantee them financial security.

[@psitivity9955]

I just hope that all the athletes representating their countries are well compensated... With or without medals

[@jaydel3]

In the Philippines the gold medalist gets 10 million (200,000 Us dollars) , sponsorships, and a free paid condo.

[@adamlhotak8180]

These video titles are getting better and better🤣

[@ScumfuckMcDoucheface]

haha right? "Next week, watch 30-time-olympic-gold-medalist sell his kidney to the Yakuza... THEN!!... when he thought no one was watching... his coach catches him dumpster-diving, searching for the Yakuza Boss' scraps."

[@Mike-vj9ut]

Doing push ups on the bench to train is crazy work.

[@sussologist]

I feel like the training should be comped by the government for high-level athletes, and at the same time, the incentives should be larger for medals. This is mainly towards the US athletes.

[@ES-wh8sm]

Your talent will take you places where your character cannot keep you

[@petergeyer7584]

This doesn‘t even address the issue of athletes who represent the US in “show the flag” sports that we never medal in. By that, I mean sports that the US has never been good enough to medal in, but that the US enters an Olympic team for because we’re America dammit - we compete in everything (think badminton, biathlon, table tennis, rhythmic gymnastics, trampoline, etc.). How do these athletes do it when there is no government support, next to no sponsorship money, no realistic chances for medals, and next to no public acknowledgement that the sports even exist? Some could say the US shouldn’t send athletes in these sports if we have no hope of medalling. But we do anyway. So who pays for their training, equipment, travel, nutrition, living expenses, etc.? In most cases, it’s all out-of-pocket.

[@TheeMelloMan]

Did you watch the end of the video? All of the athletes clearly said that it's all about the love of the sport . Also, there are plenty of athletes who are very wealthy that compete in winless sports just like there are poor atheles that compete in winless & sports we do win at.

[@TheeMelloMan]

Also, do research on the athletes. Many sports you suggested, have athletes with sponsors are are wealthy athletes.

[@joesr31]

Given a choice to enter or not enter olympics without any cash prize, athletes would still choose to go.

[@crosslink1493]

A lot of them go play in countries where there are pro leagues that can earn them a good wage. Rugby is one of those sports that is played in the USA on a 'casual' club level, but has pro leagues with great attendance at matches in other countries.

[@alexojideagu]

The UK decided we need to start winning after getting 1 Gold at Atlanta 96 and started funding the athletes through the national lottery and now we are top 4 every Olympics since 2008 Beijing.

[@alexfrank5331]

Americans: Athletes are choosing the path on their own. No one is forcing them. They should be responsible for their own finances. Also Americans: These athletes represent my country. They have an obligation for taking the spot!

[@lucasklein6805]

I know we are the biggest hypocrites ever, Simone Biles doesn’t owe the American people anything

[@MohitKumar-jf8lz]

Then they shouldn't represent usa. Go represent some other country.

[@xhafts]

Yea here in britain too

[@dirtsapient9638]

Lies lol. I dont give the first flying f@ck about the Olympics. Bunch of nonsense childrens games on a world stage. Video gamers that are not pro dont cry or wonder why they arent being paid to pursue an elective hobby. Which these are.

[@gaminikokawalage7124]

@@dirtsapient9638 people responsible for one of the largest sports events in the world aren't getting compensated while they collectively generate billions for the IOC. Obviously that's a shit situation. Ofcourse they're not directly contributing any good to society, so it's not like they deserve to get paid like they're essential workers, but American taxpayers' money goes to far worse causes. I'd rather pay some athletes a living wage than fund the prison system, or the military

[@Travis.Ladegast]

It is because the Olympics are not for getting rich, they are for representing your country to the best of your abilities.

[@Fordy0324]

Philippine weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz received more than a million dollar for her gold medal.

[@tintincruz8660]

Before that she was broke af. She was literally begging at instagram cause her team was running out of money. And to top it all off, the Duterte gov't branded her as criminal. But yeah, let's think about her winning bag 🙄

[@s_ame1135]

yeah but most are from the private sectors so who cares.

[@Dflowen]

@@tintincruz8660 oh daymn for Duterte branding her a criminal, was this before or after the Gold Medal? Either way that sucks.

[@doughnutty7317]

@@Dflowen before. It was really sad but good for her bringing our country the first gold medal. Kinda slap in the face from the govt

[@mordsythe]

250 K turns in to 125k real quickly… If you can’t live comfortably on 125k… that’s where the issue begins…

[@winsonyaphoongyiau6532]

Never knew the US athletes face this issue. Our athletes in Malaysia are given allowances by the government when they start competing in the state level, and it increases depending on the level of the competition.

[@iskanderkhan5980]

Malaysia has one medalist so far in this Olympics. America has 80.

[@winsonyaphoongyiau6532]

@@iskanderkhan5980 Sadly yes. That's also why our government pays olympics medalist very well (search it up) since there aren't many Malaysians who qualify for the Olympics and even fewer Malaysian Olympians who have won medals. We are still waiting for our Gold medal😔

[@carnagewolf1]

@@iskanderkhan5980 And the US allocates $715 billion to the military. There is enough money to give state athletes a living allowance at the very least

[@hawaiidkw1]

While I can certainly relate (I was young and poor once), I don't think it's the federal government's responsibility to support athletes. I'm vastly more concerned about teachers, garbage collectors, or first responders being underpaid than sportspeople. The most logical solution is to completely drop all pretense and make Olympians professionals. _Real_ professionals, with real contracts, real incentive clauses, and real safety nets. The organizations hiring them can make their money from ticket sales and advertising deals, just like the NHL, the PGA, or NASCAR. This whole scattershot system of handouts and endorsements and bonuses is invariably going to leave a lot of people in the lurch. One boss, one deal, one paycheck. That's how you get a level playing field.

[@heretic600]

Sadly, a lot of sponsorships go to those that don't need it. Who is General Mills gonna put on the Wheeties box? The $10 million dollar a year earning LeBron or Julie the speedwalker?

[@kingDrAgOnZoRdS]

Bron generates more money for gm

[@thatoneguy779]

Why sponsor a loser though it doesn't make any sense

[@lorenzoberti3087]

The place where the fencing woman was training was in mccarran park in Brooklyn nyc, I had soccer practice there for a while and I just found it awesome

[@nicomorales1996]

Well, now imagine being an olympic athlete in a low-income country. The winner of the gold medal in BMX freestyle had a training center exactly the same as the one of the competition in Tokyo, Kenneth Tencio from Costa Rica, 4th place in the competition, trained in a bmx park that he builded himself

[@ArjunSharma-gy1eq]

Many low income countries treat medalists very well. Due to low number of medalists from India, we treat all our medalists the best way we can. They are given price money ranging from 300k dollars to 1.5 million USD, which is huge amount in India (for a million USD you can buy 3 apartments of 4 floors each in India ). They also get a government job (they don't have to work but get regular fairly high income)

[@Phlegethon]

There’s an obvious discount to careers like this that the person actually wants to do unlike better compensated corporate jobs that people might not want to do and probably wouldn’t want to do

[@CC-si3cr]

I really like the mixture of athletes they interviewed. I am really shocked by this information. I had no idea how much it cost to be an athlete. I don't understand why the fencer isn't modeling. She could easily be signed up with one of the well-known modeling agencies in NY. Same goes for the bobsledding/track 'n field medalist. She's the FIRST person to ever medal in both summer and winter Olympics and nobody knows about her??? Are you kidding me?! I don't care if she medaled in skeet shooting and curling there should be an entire ad campaign around her amazing accomplishments.

[@lordanonimmo7699]

Many people don't know about olympic champions simply because there are too many of them,and only a few that are too damm good get wide coverage the rest are specific for their niche audiences. I agree the fence athlete is really pretty and could easily be a model,but it would probably consume the time that she spends training.

[@brimmed]

She is a model, well at least based on her instagram bio. She's with Ford Models. It's also weird cuz they show her IG pic during the talk about being an influencer and popularity, but then also talks about being poor. Idk, if she really is that poor she's the hottest poor person I've ever seen

[@CC-si3cr]

@@brimmed Plus she's blond and fit. She should never have to wonder where her next meal is coming from. She said she judges competitions to earn extra money and the pandemic made a situation where she had no money. I honestly don't know what to believe. Plus I feel weird analyzing her funds.

[@CC-si3cr]

@@lordanonimmo7699 I understand what you are saying about the niche audiences, but curling was once an odd sport and now people know about it. Same goes for synchronized swimming. I've actually seen that type of swimming in credit card commercials. I think they all just need the right agent to make things happen. The track/field guy might be a bit harder bc there are a lot of runners.

[@lordanonimmo7699]

@@CC-si3cr Curling is still niche,more people know because we have more people on the planet and we have internet,but the average person has no idea. Synchronized swimming is way more famous everyone has a ides that exists,isn't the most watched game om olympics but always brings enough attaetion.

[@juanpablovaca-lago5659]

If this is the situaton in the US, imagine being an olimpian from a poor country, you are totally screwed.

[@CherryBlossomBlyue]

Actually a loy of poor countries pay their atheletes. Did you not see the part where the guy said that the U.S was one of the few countries where the government doesn't get involved funding wise.

[@jessg101]

This is strange for me. A lot of Indian athletes who participate in the Olympics are given govt/paid jobs and monthly salary is given as soon as they qualify the national team. They also get the benefits from the central govt and also from the state govt of which they are. After they retire at 30, they join the police force or get into govt employments which pay almost well. I am learning a lot of new things about the US system that's just unbelievable.

[@pm6127]

@@jessg101 yeah..but the difference is that we don't have basic facilities for many sports.. how are we supposed to compete in water polo or fencing or skating etc with no infra?

[@jessg101]

@@pm6127 Well, that's why the indian govt spends 1/3rd of the sports budget on archery. Better facilities are available in Europe and players move there to train. This happened bcz abhinav bhindra was the gold medalist in.2008. Similarly 2016 Dipika became 4th in gymnastic and after that a lot of sponsors paid for her training in US. Sindhu moved to SK for better courts. All these are paid by the India govt with a security of a job. Unfortunately I cannot say those for USA.

[@princejangra1231]

@@pm6127 Top tier athletes are supported to train overseas Like Neeraj for reference

[@jefferydebbink282]

“The USA’s medal bonus is lower than what other nations offer.” Shows Singapore, which currently has won 0 medals in Tokyo games, and Italy, which has 30 medals of which half are bronze so 15. USA has won 79 medals.

[@devinhalim5194]

But us goverments don't support their athletes enough for me,even China do much more

[@AndorranStairway]

Devin Halim that’s kind of the problem. Scarcity creates value. The entire country of singapore knows Joseph Schooling because he won them their sole gold medal. In the US on the other hand, how many gold medalists can the average person name? Probably just Michael phelps and a couple of others, and that would be it

[@Tzyt2345]

@@devinhalim5194 Don’t bring China into the conversation trust me , and no the US I can guarantee does more .

[@devinhalim5194]

@@AndorranStairway exactly,US are spoiled Brat of olympic nations 😂😂😂

[@devinhalim5194]

@zee exactly,but creating is bigger than just supporting 😂😂😂

[@jfrd-pw4hk]

Singapore, a smaller country, invests in its athletes more than the biggest economic power in the world. WOW.