Winter Olympics 2022: 790,000 euros in bonuses paid to French medalists, 205,000 just for Fillon Maillet

The French medalists at the Beijing Olympics didn't just win a moment of glory and a piece of metal to hang around their necks.

The Blues on a podium in China will receive a bonus, linked to the color of their reward.

It is 65,000 euros for gold, 25,000 for silver and 15,000 for bronze.

Amounts identical to those received by their counterparts at the Tokyo Summer Olympics.

Paralympic medalists in Tokyo and Beijing (March 4-13) receive the same treatment.

The tricolors return from China with 14 charms, including five in gold, seven in silver and two in bronze.

In all, 790,000 euros in bonuses will be paid by the State, via the Ministry of Sports, to the Blues of this Chinese fortnight.

With his incredible Olympic Games punctuated by five medals in biathlon (two in gold, three in silver), Quentin Fillon Maillet alone will receive 205,000 euros, not counting the new sponsors that his performances could bring him.

Each member of a relay receives the same amount as an individual medalist.

The four founders, in bronze on the 4x10 kilometers, will be entitled to the same 15,000 euros as the skier Mathieu Faivre, third in the giant.

Premiums are taxable

The total sum is much lower than that of the Tokyo Olympics, which was six million euros.

The difference is obviously explained by the number of medals - 14 against 33 - but also that the French have shone in team sports in Japan, with in particular the gold of the volleyball players, as well as the coronation of the handball players and the handball players.

And as each player on the team receives a bonus, the amount flies away quickly.

Read also“I was a little angry with Martin …”: Fillon Maillet, hero of the Beijing Games, admits to having suffered in the shadow of Fourcade

The amount allocated to athletes on the podium has also changed since the Pyeongchang Olympics.

At the time, an Olympic champion received 50,000 euros, and silver and bronze were valued at 20,000 and 13,000 respectively. Bonuses have increased, but are now imposed, as in Tokyo.

Athletes who live abroad receive an amount reduced by 15% to compensate for the taxation of residents of France.

Coaches of award-winning medalists

In addition, the National Sports Agency (ANS) will also pay money to the coaches of medal-winning athletes.

It represents about half of the sums paid to the athletes: 35,000 for a first place, 15,000 and 8,000 for a second and a third.

The federations concerned and the ANS are discussing to determine the number of coaches entitled to benefit from this windfall.

In Tokyo, 1.3 million euros had been disbursed via this device, Olympic and Paralympic Games combined.

Finally, the National Sports Agency has also provided individual aid of 4,000 euros for athletes who have qualified for the Beijing Olympics and Paralympics and who are not part of the High Performance Circle, a list of athletes with high medal potential who benefit from special support from the ANS.

They must also earn less than 40,000 euros gross per year to be eligible for this sum.