Every Olympic champion wins a medal. This one also gets free colonoscopies.
Summary
Gold medal winners often earn cash prizes for their efforts. When Carlos Yulo won an Olympic title, his prize haul included free wedding photos, haircuts and a lifetime supply of mac-and-cheese.PARIS—Carlos Yulo won two Olympic gold medals for the Philippines. As it turned out, that was just the beginning of the gymnast’s epic prize haul.
At home, he will get a congressional medal and at least $350,000 from the government. Plus, a free set of headlights and fog lights. Also, free wedding photography, haircuts and furniture. And more food than he could eat in an entire lifetime. One local real-estate developer awarded him a fully furnished, three-bedroom apartment in Manila. Not to be outdone, another real-estate company offered him a house.
“I am happy that I won a gold medal," Yulo said, “and also a house."
Governments around the world, sponsors and private entrepreneurs often compensate athletes with cash, property and the most unusual prizes they can imagine. After the last Summer Games in Tokyo, for example, one Indonesian gold medalist was offered five cows.
But there may not be anyone leaving Paris with more swag than this Filipino gymnast.
Since he won his two gold medals—the Philippines had until then only one gold in its entire Olympics history—companies have raced to offer Yulo a free lifetime supply of everything he could possibly eat and drink, from coffee, ramen and strawberry float ice cream to grilled chicken and mac-and-cheese. As if he didn’t already have enough food, Yulo was also offered free access to a chain called Vikings Luxury Buffet.
And then Lafus, a food-delivery service, posted a photo showing Yulo spearing his arms, a position evoking the moment he clinched his floor routine to win gold in Paris. Photoshopped in his arms were two corn dogs. Lafus promised free delivery, too.
So it might be a good thing that the 24-year-old gymnast has yet another prize coming his way: free colonoscopies.
Virgil Lo, a Manila-based gastroenterologist, offered Yulo free consultations and endoscopic procedures for himself or a friend.
“It’s because of Filipino pride," Lo said. “We rarely get gold medals in the Olympics. I would gladly do this for other Olympic winners from the Philippines."
Most countries offer cash rewards to their medaling athletes. Hong Kong is one of the most generous, paying around $768,000 for a gold medal via a funding scheme. U.S. prizes are much more modest. Payments via what the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee calls “Operation Gold" range from $37,500 for a gold medal and $22,500 for silver to $15,000 for bronze, including for team events.
Still, that’s more than the U.K. and Sweden offer to their winners: nothing but pride.
The Kazakhstan government, on the other hand, measures medals in rooms. A gold winner gets a three-bedroom apartment, silver means a two-bedroom and a bronze medalist settles for a one-bedroom.
Yeldos Smetov, who won judo gold for Kazakhstan here, also received a herd of 100 thoroughbred horses, a Lexus and the guarantee of a smooth ride no matter his method of transportation: The local administration laid new asphalt on the road to his house.
In South Korea, Olympic medalists are exempted from compulsory military service. In Poland, winners get an investment grade diamond and a painting by “respected and talented Polish artists."
And sometimes, Olympic gifts can cause a stir.
Ahead of the Games, Olympics sponsor Samsung distributed a special edition of its new foldable smartphone, the Galaxy Z Flip 6, to the roughly 17,000 athletes and Olympic officials in Paris. The custom-built phone, which bears the Olympic symbols, came preloaded with mobile data and an unlimited public transport access card.
But a few days into the Games, some of those phones started showing up for resale on eBay.
In one ad, an Olympic edition Flip6–“Sealed In Box"—was offered for $2,600. The retail price tag of the phone in the U.S. is $1,099. It came with a booklet addressed to the Olympic and Paralympic athletes.
“I am an athlete here at the Olympics, I just receive the phone this week," the reseller wrote in the ad, typos and all. “Only athletes get this phone it is very exclusive and rare."
Samsung declined to comment.
Meanwhile, back in the Philippines, it wasn’t only Carlos Yulo who profited from his victories.
Several restaurants offered one-time promotions to anybody sharing his first name. If you were named Carlos, you could get free empanadas and ice cream. Due to high demand, one fried-chicken restaurant extended its offer to anyone named anything even remotely close to Carlos.
“Yes, we listened. To all CARLO, KARLO, CARLA, KARLA—you’re all eligible for our FREE PANCAKE until August 6!," Urban Chick assured its patrons.
