Lindsey Vonn reveals how much skiers get paid — and it's not as much as you think

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March 6, 2018 6:01 PM

Lindsey Vonn is one of the best skiers in the world, but "there's no six-figure checks coming our way," she said in a recent interview.

Vonn said in a new interview that the best skiers make about $30,000 from winning competitions.
For a star like Vonn, most of her money is made through endorsement deals.

Lindsey Vonn is one of the world's best skiers, but even she doesn't make a ton of money.

Vonn — who won a bronze medal in the downhill race at the 2018 Winter Olympics — revealed the typical salary of a skier in a recent interview for "Kneading Dough," a video series from Chase and Uninterrupted.

She said that for most career skiers like herself, "there's no six-figure checks coming our way." Vonn is a three-time Olympic medalist. Her recent bronze medal came with a $15,000 check.

"Getting paid through ski racing is very, very difficult," Vonn said. "It's a very steep pyramid. If you're not in the top five or 10 in the world, you're struggling to not have to get a second job."

"Normally, it's about $30,000 before taxes," Vonn said. "And usually, we're in another country, so we're taxed from, you know, Austria or Switzerland or wherever and then taxed again from the US. So, really, it's nothing."

Vonn said competitive skiers are paid by the International Ski Federation. In a competition with 30 racers, last place wins about $200, she said.

Despite a paltry paycheck from the sport, Vonn's endorsement and sponsorship deals with Under Armour, Red Bull, and Rolex made her one of the richest athletes competing in Pyeongchang.

Vonn credits her dad with teaching her how to monetize her love of skiing through business partnerships.

Vonn also said she's frugal, but has a weakness for Louis Vuitton, expressing her interest in the high-end fashion brand that shares her initials. Vonn also talked about the gender wage gap in sports.

"It is a pretty severe gap, but I'm hoping I can get women in ski racing more publicity and give them the push and the platform that they need to make more money," Vonn said.

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