American Olympians who come home without a medal are about to get the kind of payout usually reserved for champions. Beginning with the Milan Cortina Winter Games next month, Wall Street financier Ross Stevens plans to give every US Olympic and Paralympic athlete $200,000 per Games—no podium finish required, per the Wall Street Journal. Under the plan, $100,000 will be paid out later in life, either 20 years after an athlete's first qualifying Olympic appearance or at age 45, whichever is later. The other $100,000 is a guaranteed benefit for their families after the athlete's death. "I do not believe that financial insecurity should stop our nation's elite athletes," said Stevens, founder and CEO of Stone Ridge Holdings Group.
The gift totals $100 million, which the US Olympic & Paralympic Committee says is the largest donation in its history. Unlike many Olympic powers, the US government doesn't fund its Olympians or the USOPC, which typically runs on broadcast deals and sponsorships. The new program is designed as a kind of retirement safety net, reflecting Stevens' day job in long-term financial planning and his interest in rewarding "human excellence" without political conditions. There's also a strategic twist: The money is available for each Olympics an athlete qualifies for, which could nudge veterans to extend their careers. That matters, because roughly 60% of US medals come from athletes who've competed at previous Games.
The move may help the US narrow a long-standing benefits gap with rivals like Russia, China, and South Korea, where Olympians can receive pensions, stipends, or even military service exemptions. Other nations remain more creative with their rewards: Poland hands out investment-grade diamonds and artwork, while in Kazakhstan, judo gold medalist Yeldos Smetov recently walked away with 100 thoroughbred horses and a luxury car. Meanwhile, CBS Sports notes that some US athletes have had to work day jobs as they're training just to make ends meet.
Fortune looks at the example of Lauryn Williams, who at age 20 was earning $200,000 a year from her bobsledding, but who, after retiring, ended up a decade later interning for $12 an hour. "I was behind the ball because I was 30 years old and just starting, whereas I had friends who were already doctors and lawyers and well into their careers," she said last year. The USOPC already offers privately funded medal bonuses—$37,500 for gold, $22,500 for silver, and $15,000 for bronze—but the new plan spreads funds far more widely.
,
uBlock 
,
and
Ghostery 
)
