How Much Do Olympians Really Make Beyond That Medal

So how much do Olympians really make, beyond their medals?

No, Olympic athletes aren't paid to compete, but when they win, they absolutely do get a little somethin' somethin' from their home countries.

The U.S. Olympic Committee is paying out $37,500 per gold medal this year, $22,500 per silver, and $15,000 for each bronze. That's actually on the LOW END. Some countries give out way more.

Serbia is at the top of the list, with $214,000 per gold medal. Although, at the time of this writing, they only have two gold medals so far, so they're paying out far less than the U.S. Malaysia and Morocco are also in that range.

Australia pays $20,000 for gold, $15,000 for silver, and $10,000 for bronze. And gold medal winners also get that long and narrow package that contains the official Paris Olympics poster (designed by illustrator Ugo Gattoni). Winners also get a stuffed medal-winning Phryges, the official mascot of the 2024 Paris Games.

Singapore reportedly had a $737,000 bounty on gold medals back in 2021. They REALLY wanted to win one for their country. But unfortunately, they didn't win ANY medals that year. Their last medal was a gold in the men's 100m butterfly in 2016.

Gymnast Carlos Yulo of the Philippines just became his country's first male gold medalist, and he's getting some big private sector gifts: A condo, a house, free food for life, plus about $450,000 from his government.

Fun facts to know and tell: The actual "gold" medals are mostly made of silver, and they're worth about $950. And all of the medals this contain metal from the Eiffel Tower in them - a piece of Paris to mark the medal winners Paris, 2024 victories. A tradition I hope they continue with medals, by adding something from a historic structure, or monument of the country they are in.

The gold medals haven't actually been pure gold since 1912. According to Forbes, if the gold medal was made of pure gold, it would be worth approximately $41,161.50. That is based on the price of gold, which fluctuates in price each day.

This years Olympic gold medal is worth approximately $950, the silver medal is worth $486, and a bronze will only get you $13 at the scrapyard. But athletes, please don't!

And again, all the medals contain original iron that was used in the construction of the Eiffel Tower, which is pretty cool!

So, how much do Olympians really make beyond that medal? A lifetime of memories, and something that can never be taken away from them. Oh, and of course - Snoooooo-ooop!

Summer Olympics 2024 is officially in full swing in Paris following an Opening Ceremony for the ages.

Seriously, this Opening Ceremony had something for everyone, and get ready for us to do our best Stefon:

-Can-Can dancers.
-Lady Gaga.
-A surprising sub-plot in the overall ceremony's narrative that involved a ménage à trois.
-References to the beheading of Marie Antionette, which led into a performance from French metal band Gojira.

-A buttload of rain.
-Priceless artwork from the Louvre coming to life.
-A silver horse galloping across the Seine in majestic glory.

-A catwalk from out of nowhere highlighting France's club scene and the country's influence on fashion.
-A brief performance from Les Misérables.

And then, as if things couldn't get any more over-the-top, Celine Dion delivers a stunning performance of Edith Piaf's "Hymne A L'Amour" from inside of the Eifle Tower. The legendary singer has been battling stiff-person syndrome, which is a condition that impacts the central nervous system. This condition has affected Dion's ability to sing. She revealed her diagnosis in December 2022, stopped performing and made very few public appearances while she sought treatment to return to performing.

Even once the Olympic cauldron is extinguished, people will still be talking about this triumphant moment.

Now that we've gone through all of our tissues from happy-crying about Celine, it's time to get down to business and talk about the athletes.

This 2024 Opening Ceremony was very unique for the above reasons, but also because it saw the Parade of Nations actually make their way down the Seine in boats of all sizes. Some small countries had a small boat to themselves. Oftentimes, there were multiple countries sharing a boat, while countries with large delegations had massive boats just for their athletes.

Regardless of boat size, pretty much every athlete got drenched by the pouring rain throughout the entire Opening Ceremony. However, the rain didn't seem to dampen the moods of the athletes. In fact, Kelly Clarkson commented, "Everyone is killing that wet look. Just sayin’!"

Now, because of the rain, this led to many of the athletes to wear clear plastic rain ponchos over their Opening Ceremony outfits, which had to be a bit of a bummer. (It certainly got in the way of checking out all of the various team outfits.) However, this also made us take a closer look at the fashion choices of each nation, and it's led to our very serious (wink-wink) assessment of the best and worst fashion choices from the Summer Olympics 2024 Opening Ceremony. Enjoy!