How much do U.S. Olympians get paid?
Nothing -- unless they actually win a medal.
Any American athlete who wins gold receives $25,000, silver medalists receive $15,000 and third-place finishers get $10,000.
The medals themselves are much less valuable than the price money. Gold medals have a value of $600, silver $300, and bronze less than $5.
Prior to 2016, Olympic medalists from the U.S. have had to pay taxes on their winnings. But that changed in October 2016, when President Barack Obama signed a bill that prohibited the IRS from taxing Olympic winnings.
Only athletes who make more than $1 million or more a year will still have to pay taxes.
According to the Team USA fund, the U.S. is one of very few countries in the world that doesn't fund Olympic athletes with government money.
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