Uzbekistan invested $4 million per medal at Paris Olympics: Detailed analysis

Uzbekistan's sports delegation achieved its best results at the Paris Olympics. With 13 medals, including 8 golds, Uzbekistan ranked 13th among 206 countries, 1st among post-Soviet states, Turkic nations, and Muslim countries, and 4th in Asia.

Gazeta.uz studied how much preparation and rewarding the winners cost Uzbekistan’s budget and compared the findings with other countries.

Preparation and Participation Costs

According to state budget laws from previous years, the following amounts were allocated for preparation and participation in the 2024 Summer Olympic Games:

• In 2022: 135 billion UZS;
• In 2023: 216 billion UZS;
• In 2024: 250 billion UZS.

Based on the above, one can see that a total of 601 billion UZS was allocated for preparation for the Paris Olympics. At the average exchange rate for each year, this amounts to approximately $50.55 million.

Reward Costs

According to the presidential decree, Olympic champions received $200,000, silver medalists $100,000, and bronze medalists $50,000. Coaches were awarded $50,000, $25,000, and $12,500 respectively.

Thus, $1.6 million was awarded to eight gold medalists, $200,000 to two silver medalists, and $150,000 to three bronze medalists. Therefore, the total prize pool for athletes was $1.95 million.

According to Gazeta.uz, the number of coaches receiving prize money is unknown, but if each athlete's coach is awarded, the total amount would be $487,500.

The gold medalists also received Tahoe cars worth 1.04 billion UZS or $82,330 each. Silver medalists received BYD Song Plus EV Champion cars valued at 395.3 million UZS (or $31,300), and bronze medalists received BYD Song Plus DM-i Champion cars valued at 387.2 million UZS (or $30,670).

Based on official prices, the eight Tahoes, two BYD Song Plus EV Champions, and three BYD Song Plus DM-i Champions (in their minimum configuration) cost approximately 10.27 billion UZS or $813,300.

Champions were also awarded two-story cottages, and silver and bronze medalists were given apartments, although the prices are not disclosed in the article.

Thus, on average, $3.89 million was allocated from the state budget for each medal, and with prize money and cars included, the figure rises to $4.14 million.

What About Other Countries?

Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan ranked 43rd at the Olympics with 7 medals – 1 gold, 3 silver, and 3 bronze.

According to Kazakhstan's Deputy Minister of Tourism and Sports, Serik Zharasbayev, about 980 million tenge (25.77 billion UZS) was allocated for the preparation and participation of the national team. This is 23.3 times less than in Uzbekistan, Zharasbayev added.

In Kazakhstan, Olympic gold medalists receive $250,000, silver medalists $150,000, and bronze medalists $75,000. In addition, 4th, 5th, and 6th places receive $30,000, $10,000, and $5,000 respectively. In total, Kazakhstan will pay its athletes $1.08 million for the 2024 Olympics results.

Summing up the figures, Kazakhstan allocated 140 million tenge (3.68 billion UZS) or $291,600 for each medal from the state budget, and with prize money included, $423,700. This is almost 10 times less than in Uzbekistan.

At the same time, according to the World Bank, Kazakhstan's GDP ($259.7 billion) is 2.8 times higher than Uzbekistan's, and GDP per capita is 5.2 times higher ($13,088 compared to $2,510).

United Kingdom

The UK delegation ranked 7th in Paris with 65 medals. According to The Telegraph, the country spent £245.84 million preparing for the Olympics. That is, each medal cost an average of £3.78 million (or $4.86 million), slightly more than in Uzbekistan.

However, the UK’s GDP ($2.27 trillion) is 25 times higher than Uzbekistan’s ($90.9 billion).

In the UK, no prize money is awarded for Olympic medals. Medalists earn money through endorsements and sponsorships.

Gazeta.uz notes that New Zealand, Norway, and Sweden also do not pay their winners. In these countries, athletes earn money solely through sponsorships. The role of the government, national Olympic committees, and local federations is limited to helping with training, coaches, and staff salaries.

 Other Countries

In Tajikistan, bronze medalists receive $19,000, silver medalists are awarded a two-room apartment and $24,000, and champions receive $28,000 and a three-room apartment.

In Kyrgyzstan, Olympic medalists receive 10 million soms (about $119,000) for gold, 7 million soms ($83,000) for silver, and 5 million soms ($60,000) for bronze.

Ukraine pays its champions $125,000 for gold, $80,000 for silver, and $55,000 for bronze. Azerbaijan awards $235,000, $118,000, and $58,750, respectively, Georgia $371,000, $186,000, and $93,000, and Armenia $51,500, $38,600, and $25,700. In these countries, GDP per capita is several times higher than in Uzbekistan.

The prize money in other countries is shown in the following table (in order: gold, silver, bronze):