Richest Olympians ever and enormous net worths – billionaire heir to NBA greats (2024)
Many Olympians have demonstrated their worth outside the world of sports, and a few have even gone on to achieve billionaire status with some gargantuan net worths
The Olympics assembles some of the most accomplished humans in existence - but not all streaks of success are limited to their sporting fields.
Despite reaching the pinnacle in their athletic endeavours, there are also those Olympians who boast monetary riches, too. Some have even managed to complete the set by adding Olympic gold to their treasure troves of accomplishments.
One under-the-radar example - but by no means the least notable - is Danish dressage rider Anna Kasprzak, who has taken part in two editions of the Summer Games. Kasprzak's grandfather, Karl Toosbuy, founded shoe brand Ecco, and Forbes estimates her net worth to be $1.3billion (£1bn) through company shares inherited along with her mother and brother.
And yet that figure is dwarfed by the mammoth money game of one Michael Jordan, who won Olympic gold on two occasions: once as a prospect at the 1984 Los Angeles Games and again as a veteran at Barcelona 1992. But for all the earnings 'MJ' raked in during a glittering NBA career with the Chicago Bulls and Washington Wizards, his net worth of today was made off the court.
According to Forbes, Jordan is valued at around £2.5bn, the vast majority of which is estimated to have come from his endorsem*nts with brands like Nike, Gatorade and Hanes. The former of course led to the foundation of his Air Jordan brand, while he sold a majority stake in the Charlotte Hornets in 2023, with the franchise valued at £2.3bn at the time.
But Jordan isn't alone among basketball superstars on the Olympian rich list. In fact, a number of NBA icons worth nine figures or more have graced the Summer Games since the sport's biggest names entered the ballot of big earners in recent decades.
The likes of LA Lakers legend Magic Johnson (£940m), LeBron James (£940m), Shaquille O'Neal (£390m) and Hakeem Olajuwon (£234m) have each attained Olympian status as basketball players. However, in each case, they've followed that up by displaying considerable business nous through their investments and entrepreneurial spirit in business.
It seems it's a significant step down in earnings from basketball to football, with nine-time Ballon d'Or winner Lionel Messi not quite matching up to his NBA counterparts. The World Cup-winner was already a global champion prior to his 2022 triumph in Qatar given he was part of the Argentina team that claimed Olympic gold at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
Messi, 37, is estimated to have a net worth of around £470m, which is somewhat surprising given the icon is close to peerless in his field. That being said, the South American has some time to catch up the likes of Jordan and Johnson, who have had a couple more decades to build their business empires.
Though nothing to be sniffed at, Michael Phelps' approximate net worth of £78m isn't quite on par with his ball-playing peers. The most decorated Olympian of all time with 28 total medals (including 23 golds), it seems only fair the retired American swimmer is up there on the podium when it comes to earnings.
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Just behind Phelps is another Olympic icon in Usain Bolt, whose £70m riches have been formed around his image as the fastest man of all time. The 100-metre world record-holder earned around £8m annually from his deal with Pumas while at the peak of his powers, expanding his Track & Records restaurant business since retiring from the track in 2017.
Although technically a Winter Olympian, American snowboarder Shaun White is a worthy mention given his net worth of a little more than £50m. The snow sensation has been the basis of multiple video games, winning three Winter Olympic golds and 15 titles at the X Games.
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LA Lakers legend Magic Johnson (£940m), LeBron James (£940m), Shaquille O'Neal (£390m) and Hakeem Olajuwon (£234m) have all achieved Olympian status as basketball players. But they didn't stop there – each of them has shown impressive business acumen through their investments and entrepreneurial ventures.
With an estimated fortune of around $1 billion, Danish dressage rider Anna Kasprzak is by far the richest Olympian globally. She represented Denmark at the Summer Olympics in 2012 and 2016.
LeBron James, meanwhile, is the only billionaire competing in the Olympics, part of a star-studded USA men's basketball team (James made $128.8 million on and off the court between May 2023 and May 2024, according to Forbes).
While athletes from some countries can land sizable sums when they win—Singapore will pay about $740,000 for a gold medal, $370,000 for a silver and $180,000 for a bronze—for most U.S. athletes, chasing Olympic glory is no way to earn a decent living.
American swimmer Michael Phelps is the most-decorated Olympian of all time, with 28 medals, 23 of which are gold. He also was the first athlete to win 8 gold medals at a single Olympics.
Earnings are for the 12 months ended June 30, 2024. The 20 top-earning Olympians features 13 NBA players, including the four highest-paid athletes after Rahm with LeBron James ($127.7 million), Stephen Curry ($101.9 million), Giannis Antetokounmpo ($100.8 million) and Kevin Durant ($89.7 million).
Michael Phelps, often hailed as the greatest swimmer in Olympic history, has an impressive net worth of $100 million. His career achievements and post-Olympics endorsem*nts have solidified his position at the top of the swimming world's wealth rankings. Michael Phelps' swimming career is nothing short of extraordinary.
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.
The highest-paid athlete at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games was the golfer Jon Rahm. The Spaniard's annual earnings for 2024 totaled 210 million U.S. dollars, which came on the back of Rahm joining the Saudi Arabia-owned LIV Golf tour in late 2023.
Swimmer Michael Phelps is widely considered the greatest Olympic athlete to ever grace the games. Phelps earned a total of 23 gold, three silver and two bronze medals, making him the most decorated Olympic athlete of all time.
The oldest Olympic gold medalist in history is Oscar Swahn of Sweden, according to Guinness World Records. In 1912, Oscar was on the winning Running Deer shooting team at the Olympic Games in Stockholm, Sweden. He was 64 years and 258 days old at the time.
Celebritynetworth.com estimates that Biles' net worth is $20 million. The site also says that around the time of the 2020 Tokyo Games, "Biles was the highest-paid Olympic athlete in terms of endorsem*nts." It estimates that the gold medalist earned "at least" $20 million from brand deals between 2019 and 2021.
American rapper Snoop Dogg is reportedly making $500,000 per day at the Paris Olympic Games. Snoop Dogg was hired by NBC and Peaco*ck as a correspondent for the Olympic Games, working on both the live broadcasts and on social media.
Athletes who make less than $1 million a year won't pay U.S. federal taxes on their prize money, but that money will still fall within the reach of state and local tax agencies as well as French tax collectors. In 2016, President Barack Obama signed the U.S. Appreciation for Olympians and Paralympians Act into law.
1. Jon Rahm. The one Olympian who earns more year on year than a literal billionaire is Spanish golfer Jon Rahm. Rahm makes plenty from his winnings, with both a Masters and US Open win on his list of accolades, but it's his contract with LIV Golf that's responsible for making him the richest Olympian of all.
In his own words, "Nothing anymore." But he hasn't left the pool completely. Over the last eight years, he's done swimming commentary for NBC and shown up poolside at Arizona State University, whose swimming program was run by his former coach, Bob Bowman. He also oversees the Michael Phelps Foundation.
As of Aug 30, 2024, the average annual pay for an Olympic Athlete in the United States is $393,215 a year. Just in case you need a simple salary calculator, that works out to be approximately $189.05 an hour. This is the equivalent of $7,561/week or $32,767/month.
What Olympic athlete made the most money? Hong Kong and Singapore offer the highest payouts, by far, for Olympic winners. A gold medalist from Hong Kong, a country that has had four athletes reach the top of the podium in its history, gets $768,000. Singapore pays gold medalists $745,000, per CNBC.
Introduction: My name is Melvina Ondricka, I am a helpful, fancy, friendly, innocent, outstanding, courageous, thoughtful person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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