By Rebecca Bull
High Performance Sport New Zealand provides Olympic medallists grants of NZ$40,000 per annum for gold medal winners and $30,000 for silver and bronze. Photo: RNZ
Aotearoa celebrated its most successful Olympics yet, with 20 spots on the podium - 10 of which were in the top spot receiving gold medals.
Kiwis watched as our Olympians put their bodies and minds to the test across a range of sports and events, no doubt ticking off lifelong dreams. But should there be any further compensation bonus to push that little bit harder?
Around the world, successful athletes are awarded cash bonuses for their performance - from nil to hundreds of thousands of dollars.
No doubt brand deals for our most decorated will be flooding their comms, but how do New Zealand athletes stack up when it comes to getting a payout?
International payouts
Athletes in Hong Kong are believed to be claiming the largest prize money - handling a whopping US$768,000 (NZ$1.27 million) for gold, $384,000 for silver, and $192,000 for bronze medals.
Around the world, other nations are not too far behind with several earning in the hundreds of thousands for the Olympic efforts.
Singapore, Indonesia, Israel, Republic of Kazakhstan, Malaysia and Spain are among the most lavish when it comes to rewards.
Meanwhile, France - hosts of this year's Paris Games - awarded their athletes US$87,000 for gold, $43,000 for silver and $22,000 for bronze.
Across the ditch, Australian medallists will be claiming US$13,000 for gold, $10,000 for silver and $7000 for bronze.
Photo: Iain McGregor / www.photosport.nz
New Zealand rewards
Back home, New Zealand athletes get funding in the form of high-performance grants.
High Performance Sport New Zealand (HPSNZ), the government agency that provides funding and support for New Zealand athletes in the high-performance system, provides Olympic medallists grants of NZ$40,000 - to compare internationally, that is about US$24,000 - per annum for gold medallists and $30,000 (US$18,000) for silver and bronze.
Olympians who just miss out on the podium also get rewards. They will receive $20,000 for placing fourth to sixth and $10,000 for placing seventh or eighth.
The grant payments, which are made by HPSNZ to National Sports Organisations (NSOs) who engage and pay their athletes, are the same amount for our Paralympians.
Sport and Recreation Minister Chris Bishop's press team directed questions about athletes' pay to HPSNZ, however the minister acknowledged "the NZ Olympic Committee, High Performance Sport NZ, and Sport NZ have all put in a huge effort to get our team to Paris".
"I know they are rightly delighted with the results, and that they are already planning for the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles," he said in a statement.
"Our entire Olympic Team should be enormously proud of what they've achieved in Paris. Their performances have been magnificent, and every one of them has exemplified the sportsmanship and integrity that New Zealanders have come to be known for across the sporting world."
Photo: SW Pix / www.photopsort.nz
Public opinion
RNZ spoke to Kiwis on the streets of Christchurch about if Olympians should be paid extra for success on the world stage.
Most people agreed a cash reward was good incentive to encourage people, especially young people, into sports. One man said government money was being spent on worse things.
However, one woman said sport should not be all about being "number one" and athletes should participate for the joy - even at a high level.
"It seems a bit yuck to just expect performance-based pay for someone who's an athlete who's doing their damnedest," she said.
Watch the video below for the full range of opinions.
Pay increase in 2025
However, while the excellence grants which athletes receive for succeeding at Olympic and Paralympic Games will remain unchanged, HPSNZ in July announced additional funding for top athletes amid tough financial times.
From 2025, eligible athletes will receive NZ$50,000 per annum as an Elite Training Grant - an increase of $17,500.
Meanwhile, its Potential Training Grant will increase by $14,000 to $25,000 per annum. This equates to approximately $2 million additional direct financial support for athletes.
The increases will come into effect for the 2025-2028 cycle for eligible athletes from individual sports who compete in events which are confirmed as part of the next winter and summer Olympic and Paralympic Games cycle.
HPSNZ director of high performance Steve Tew said the increase followed athlete surveys which revealed financial pressures as the leading source of stress for athletes.
"We have listened to our partner NSOs and their athletes and these increases will help athletes to better balance training, competition, study and work commitments, while reducing financial pressures," he said.
"The increases are the result of careful collaboration and consultation with [NSOs] and athlete representative groups. This continues to put athletes, and their wellbeing, at the centre of high-performance investment decision making for the 2025-28 cycle."
