MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST:

Standing on the podium with an Olympic medal is one of the highest honors for an athlete.

AILSA CHANG, HOST:

But is the medal their only reward?

KELLY: Well, in most countries, the answer is no. Many of the winning athletes receive a hefty financial bonus as well. The amount? Well, that depends.

CHANG: According to the National Olympic Committee, this year the U.S. will pay a bonus of about $37,000 for each gold medal winner, around 22,000 for silver and around 15,000 for bronze. I mean, that's not bad, right?

KELLY: I would take it. However, other countries pay even more. Gold medal winners from Morocco, Malaysia and Serbia get more than $200,000 each.

CHANG: Whoa.

KELLY: Yeah. And for the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, Singapore said it would pay an athlete - wait for it - $1 million for the gold. However...

CHANG: Oh, my God.

KELLY: I know, but no takers.

CHANG: Well, the U.S. payout may seem low in comparison, but there's a reason for that. The U.S. dishes out more bonuses because the team usually wins more medals. In the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, the U.S. took home a total of 113 medals.

KELLY: That is a lot of bonuses.

CHANG: Oh, yeah.

KELLY: But then, yeah, there's Poland. According to a spokesperson for the Polish Olympic Committee, if you win a medal, you get a monetary bonus, a high-quality diamond, vacation voucher for two and a painting. And on top of all of that, if they win the gold, they also get a free two-bedroom apartment.

CHANG: Whoa - a place to hang the painting, I guess.

KELLY: (Laughter) There you go.

(SOUNDBITE OF VANGELIS' "CHARIOTS OF FIRE") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

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