Top 10 richest Olympians of 2021, from Roger Federer to Usain Bolt and Caitlyn Jenner – who wins the gold medal for the most endorsement deals?

Jul 23 , 2021

Roger Federer, Serena Williams and Michael Phelps are three of the most famous – and richest – Olympians. Photos: On Running; @serenawilliams, @m_phelps00/Instagram

Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games

Tennis fills three of the top 10 slots: serial champions Federer, who has endorsements with Rolex and Mercedes-Benz, and Serena Williams, plus a surprise No 1

Boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr. and swimmer Michael Phelps make the list, but so do two horse riders (thanks to their billionaire families) and a snowboarder

As well as all the national pride and inspiring influence that comes with competing in the Olympic Games, it’s also true that sporting success can bring in a pretty penny – especially for athletes that take a medal and place on the podium, delivering extra value and visibility to their all-important sponsors.

You might expect that the most well-paid athletes generally come from the almighty Team USA, but scrolling down our list of 10 of the richest living Olympians – according to the number crunchers at Celebrity Net Worth – the nationality of our No 1 is much less obvious …

10. Shaun White – US$60 million

Shaun White of the US competes during qualification in the men’s halfpipe snowboarding competition at the Torino 2006 Winter Olympic Games in Bardonecchia, Italy. Photo: Reuters

The American snowboarder, 34, won three Olympic gold medals and became a millionaire before he was 20. Besides an annual income of US$10 million from deals with companies including (deep breath) Burton Snowboards, Birdhouse Skateboards, Park City Mountain Resort, Adio, Red Bull, Target, Oakley, Hewlett-Packard, T-Mobile, Verizon, GoPro, Beats By Dre, Sony, Mountain Dew and Ubisoft, the “Flying Tomato” – so-called for his distinctive hair – also draws income from real estate investments in California and New York, according to Money.

Olympic snowboarder Shaun White and his skateboard. Photo: @shaunwhite/Instagram

Other sources of income include acting (including playing himself in the 2011 movie Friends with Benefits), the Shaun White Skateboarding video game, music and fashion.

9. Michael Phelps – US$80 million

Michael Phelps swims in the heats of the men’s 200-metre butterfly at the Rio Olympics in 2016. Photo: Reuters

The 36-year-old American swimmer holds the record for the most Olympics medals won by any athlete: 28, including a record 23 golds, according to the Olympics’ official website.