Usain Bolt will cash a massive paycheck in 2016
In the realm of track and field, not even Caitlyn Jenner has approached the kind of earning power Usain Bolt has enjoyed since bursting on the scene with a pair of individual world records in 2008.
The 29-year-old Jamaican sprinter took home $32.5 million (A$42m) over the calendar year leading up to the 2016 Summer Olympics, and he stands to make even more in the coming year after Rio de Janeiro.
Bolt ranked No. 32 on Forbes Magazine’s annual list of the top 100 highest-paid athletes, raking in A$3.2 million in winnings and another A$39 million in endorsements between June 2015 and June 2016. He is the only Olympian on the top-100 list who doesn’t play professional basketball, golf, tennis or soccer.
Of course, American swimming legend Michael Phelps’ annual earnings are a mystery, especially after losing endorsement deals in the wake of scandals involving marijuana and alcohol.
Phelps does not appear on Forbes’ list of 14 Olympians who earned at least A$23 million from June to June, and online estimates of his net worth come in at A$71million — shy of Bolt’s estimated A$78 million net worth.
But it’s hard to imagine Bolt is worth just A$78 million if he’s annually earned tens of millions for the past eight years, so take that number with a heaping helping of salt.
The A$42 million figure from his previous year is a more accurate depiction of Bolt’s earning power, as he reportedly makes up to A$520,000 in appearance fees for each of his estimated eight annual events in non-Olympic years.
Add a sponsorship deal with Puma worth more than A$13 million per year through 2025, nine more global endorsements and seven regional campaigns, and you can see how his salary starts to skyrocket.
In addition to Puma, Bolt has represented Gatorade, Visa, Virgin Media, All Nippon Airways, luxury Swiss watchmaker Hublot and Australian telecom brand Optus, among other popular companies, according to Forbes. He launched Miami-based company Champion Shave just before the Olympics.
On top of all that, Bolt appears as a character in the wildly popular video game Temple Run.
If Bolt should sweep the 100- and 200-metre sprints for a third straight Summer Olympics — adding a third consecutive 4×100-meter relay gold for good measure — he will cement his legacy as one of the greatest Olympians in history.
Endorsements aren’t expected to fade anytime soon for Bolt, particularly since he’s already committed to competing at the 2017 World Championships in London.
Oh, by the way, Bolt would earn an estimated A$78,000 for each gold medal in London, but as we’ve learned from his tax returns from the past few Olympic cycles, that’s chump change for the Jamaican.
More from Fourth Place Medal