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Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →Forbes reported before the 2026 Milan–Cortina Winter Olympics that 13 countries and territories had pledged an estimated $100,000 or more for an athlete’s gold medal in an individual event. Singapore topped the list at about $787,000, followed by Hong Kong at about $768,000. These are reported estimates—not a standard Olympic payout: the amount and who receives it can depend on the event, the paying organization, repeat-medal rules and local policy.
Which countries and territories made the list?
The figures below are Forbes’s approximate U.S. dollar conversions for individual-event gold awards reported ahead of the Games. Forbes said it used exchange rates available when its article was prepared, so the dollar equivalents are time-sensitive. Hong Kong is a territory, not a sovereign country; the headline’s 13 therefore counts countries and territories together.
| Country or territory | Reported individual gold award |
|---|---|
| Singapore | About $787,000 |
| Hong Kong | About $768,000 |
| Poland | About $355,000 |
| Kazakhstan | About $250,000 |
| Italy | About $213,000 |
| Cyprus | About $177,000 |
| Bulgaria | About $151,000 |
| Lithuania | About $133,000 |
| Kosovo | About $130,000 |
| Estonia | About $118,000 |
| Czechia | About $117,000 |
| Spain | About $111,000 |
| Greece | About $106,000 |
These estimates describe promised individual-event gold awards, not a uniform payment attached to every Olympic medal. Forbes also reported that at least 37 delegations confirmed cash medal bonuses among the 92 competing delegations it contacted; the 13 above are those it said reached the $100,000 threshold for individual gold. Forbes’s comparison is the source for the list and estimates.
Why the headline amount is not necessarily an athlete’s payout
Different organizations may fund the award
A bonus can come from a government, a National Olympic Committee (NOC), or a combination of sources. New Zealand’s announced medal scheme, for example, was funded by apparel partner Kathmandu rather than being simply a government tariff. The funding source matters because a headline total can combine arrangements that are not alike. The New Zealand Olympic Committee notice describes that country’s scheme.
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Team-event figures may use a different calculation
A listed individual-event amount should not automatically be multiplied by the number of athletes on a team. New Zealand announced $5,000 per athlete for gold in events with four or fewer athletes, compared with $25,000 per team for gold in events with five or more. Those are different bases of payment: one is stated per athlete, the other per team.
Repeat medals, coaches and non-cash benefits change the picture
Some systems may pay an award for each medal; others may cap or otherwise limit repeat awards. Coaches may also receive a share, and some arrangements include non-cash prizes. A cash figure alone therefore cannot establish an athlete’s total compensation or the amount ultimately kept after tax. The broader comparisons by Forbes and WBAL note differences in repeat-medal treatment and other support. WBAL’s comparison surveyed 92 nations and territories and reported that awards ranged from nearly $800,000 in Singapore to zero in some European countries, using guaranteed individual-event awards.
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How the list compares with other bonus figures
Other reports use different samples or scopes, so their numbers should not be read as a direct revision of Forbes’s 13-entry ranking.
| Report or program | Figure | What it represents |
|---|---|---|
| Sports Business Journal survey | $93,000 | Reported average gold-medal bonus across the NOCs in its survey; examples included Kazakhstan at $250,000 and New Zealand at $3,000. Sports Business Journal |
| France Ministry of Sports | €80,000 gold; €40,000 silver; €20,000 bronze | Announced for Olympic and Paralympic medallists and guides at Milan–Cortina; the state funds the awards, and multiple medals are cumulative. France Ministry of Sports announcement |
| Italy, start-of-Games conversion | About $213,000 gold; $106,000 silver; $71,000 bronze | Forbes’s approximate U.S. dollar conversions of Italy’s euro awards, reported at the start of the Games—not fixed dollar amounts. Forbes’s post-Games reporting |
The French ministry’s published schedule shows why a gold-only ranking is incomplete: silver and bronze also carry announced awards there, and the program covers Paralympic medallists and guides as well as Olympic medallists. Italy’s dollar equivalents likewise illustrate how currency conversion can shift a reported ranking even when the underlying euro award is unchanged.
A large medal bonus is only one kind of athlete support
Countries that do not appear among the 13 are not necessarily providing no financial support. Some jurisdictions may offer broader athlete funding, stipends or benefits rather than a direct cash award tied to a medal. A ranking of guaranteed medal bonuses measures one specific incentive, not the total public or private support available to an athlete.
For a personal-finance comparison, the most useful questions are: who funds the payment, whether it is per athlete or per team, whether repeat medals qualify, whether coaches share it, and whether the stated amount is cash or includes other benefits. The Forbes figures answer only the individual-event gold comparison, in approximate U.S. dollars at the time of reporting.
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