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Wen di modern Olympic Games start for Athens, Greece for 1896, na strictly amateur affair and dem bin no allow any professional athlete or pay prize money.
But for dis Paris Olympics, e get athletes wey dey super rich, who dey earn hundreds of millions of dollars a year, and still get di ones wey just dey manage to continue to dey compete.
Olympians dey earn money from a different source: from sponsors; financial rewards wey dia home kontris dey give dem; and now, for di first time, prize money wey dem dey win for di Games.
But no be evri sport dey give di cash, and e don cause some controversy about how best to divide up di riches wey di Games dey generate.
Boxing and athletics only
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Out of di 32 sports wey dey represented for Paris 2024, na only two of dem dey give prize money - athletics and boxing.
Di World Athletics, track and fields international governing body, bin make di surprise announcement for April, say gold medalists for Paris 2024 go receive $50,000 for winning dia event.
One month later, di International Boxing Association (IBA) tok say e go also give out prize money of $100,000 to Olympic champions - although one quarter of dat go go to di national federation of di athlete and anoda quarter to dia coaches.
For both sports, silver and bronze medalists go also receive smaller sum, wit boxing also giving prize money down to di fifth place.
Di prize money no dey come directly from di Olympic authorities but from di governing bodies of di two sports.
World Athletics go use some of di money wey dem go receive from di International Olympic Committee (IOC), and dis money na share of di revenues wey dey generated by di Olympic Games.
Bifor now, di athletics body bin dey spend di money for athletes development, and some pipo don question weda di introduction of prize money na di correct choice.
“To give di money to di winners perhaps na to reinforce say na only di top athletes dey get paid,” Dr Tom Bason from di Centre for Business in Society at Coventry University, wey specialise in major sporting events, tok.
“Di chances dey say di pipo wey dey win gold medals for athletics na di ones wey don already get significant sponsorship and endorsem*nts deals.”
“One of di criticisms be say, e dey beta to use dis moni in developing athletes, giving money to younger athletes, rather dan dose wey don already dey on di very top of dia game.”
But even Olympic champions fit benefit from extra money bicos some of dem don find diasef in difficult financial situations.
Olga Korbut, di Soviet gymnastics legend wey win four gold medals and two silver for her Olympic career, get to sell three of her medals for $333,500 for 2017.
For boxing, e neva too dey clear wia di prize fund dey come from. Di IOC bin don cut dia relationship wit di IBA sake of wetin dem describe as “lack of financial clarity” for dia operations.
“As always wit di IBA, e no dey clear wia di money dey come from,” di IOC tok for one public statement.
“Di argument be say di IBA dey do dis to keep diasef as part of di Olympics and relevant as much as anything,” Dr Bason add.
National pride
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E get plenty oda ways wia athletes fit get financial rewards from winning medals for di Olympic Games.
Many of dem go get reward from dia kontri if dem perform well and win a medal.
Singapore na di nation wey pipo believe say dem dey pay di most, each of dia gold medallists go get $750,000 for Paris (dat na about one million Singapore dollars).
For di hosts, France, di amount na 80,000 euros ($87,000) while Moroccan athletes go get even bigger money, $200,000 for gold medal.
E dey ahead of di US, wia dia “Operation Gold” fund dey give $37,500.
Some kontris, like di UK, no dey offer any financial reward.
Instead, Team GB dey spend di money on di athletes as dem dey prepare bifor di Games, and athletes wey dem believe say dem get high chance of winning gold dey eligible for up to £28,000 a year.
Even though dis no be small money, e no dey anywia near di ogbonge riches wey di world most famous athletes fit dey earn.
“You get a real mix of athletes [for di Games] wey get significant salaries like di US basketball team,” Dr Bason tok, "to athletes wey dey do part time jobs to fund diasef.”
Star power
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Spanish golfer Jon Rahm na di highest paid athlete for Paris 2024 according to di annual sporting rich list published by Forbes. Di finance magazine dey estimate say Rahm earn $218m last year, wit most of dat money coming from di controversial Saudi-funded LIV Golf tour.
Di second best paid na di US star basketball players. Lebron James, for instance bin dey earn about $128m for 2023.
Wit di big international profiles of golf and basketball, competing for di Olympics no too get much impact on di earning potential of Rahm and James.
But for lower profile athletes, winning a medal fit help give dem a boost for dia income.
Most times, dem dey get clauses for dia endorsem*nt contracts wey go tok say dem go get bonus payment from dia sponsors if dem reach di podium.
Dis kind arrangement dey usually dey confidential, but for one legal dispute between Nike and New Balance for 2016, dem reveal say di US runner Boris Berian suppose receive $150,000 if e win gold for di Olympics.
“I think a lot of pipo dey see athletes and dem see di top US athletes or dey see global footballers playing for European teams and think say earning $100,000, $200,000 a week na wetin evri athlete dey enjoy, but e no really be like dat," Dr Bason tok.
“E get plenty athletes wey dey struggle to get by. E get one research for Australia some years ago and dem find out say 40% of athletes wey dey currently train for di 2032 Olympic Games get part-time or full-time jobs.”
Even for di United States, wey be home to many of di world wealthiest sports stars, many competitors still dey struggle.
One recent study by di US Olympic and Paralympic Committee find out say 26.5% of dia current athletes dey earn less dan $15,000 a year.
Future changes
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Di tough debate go continue weda giving out prize money to top athletes na di best use of sporting federations funds, but e dey likely say di practice go expand beyond athletics and boxing.
“Pressure go certainly dey on federations, to pay prize money,” Dr Bason tok.
However, e fit could cause problems for sports wey dey receive less media exposure, and diafore less money.
“Athletics and international boxing na two of di more high profile sports around di world,” Dr Bason tok. “Dem follow for di sports wey go find am easier to get additional funding from sponsorships and endorsem*nts.”
“And perhaps oda sports, I dey reason canoeing for example, if dem get pressure to pay dia athletes, dem no go fit do am quite easily.”
Champions for dis Paris 2024 Olympic go at least console diasef wit di fact say dem go receive a gold medal if dem win dia events.
And wetin be di value of dat?
Dis year winner medal contain 505 grams of silver and six grams of gold (gold medals no dey ever be solid gold since 1912), and dia raw value na $950.
But Paris Olympic champions go dey hope say di memories of dia victories, dat one go dey priceless.
