Here is your Forbes Daily Briefing for Sunday, July 28th.

Today on Forbes, these countries pay Olympians six-figure bonuses for winning gold.

When LeBron James and the U.S. men's national basketball team take the court today, Sunday,

they will be competing for more than national pride.

Every American athlete who wins a gold medal this summer will receive a $37,500 bonus,

courtesy of the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee or U.S. O.S. O.C.

While that's hardly a difference-maker for the multi-millionaire MBA stars,

and in James's case, Billionaire Star,

it's a boon for many other athletes trying to cover the cost of their Olympic dreams.

Still, that financial reward pales in comparison with what other nations offer for winning gold.

Ahead of the Paris Olympics, which officially began with Friday's opening ceremony,

Forbes contacted the National Olympic Committees or Government Sports Ministries of all 2006 countries and territories

participating and confirmed that at least 33 will award cash prizes for

medals. Within that group 15 verified that they will pay more than $100,000 to

athletes who top the podium. Hong Kong, which competes independently of China at the Olympics, ranks number one among those respondents.

The territory offers $768,000 for a gold medal, a feat accomplished only twice by its athletes in the city's 17 appearances at the summer games.

In fact, Hong Kong's prize for a silver medal is more than any of the 32 other nations will pay for victory, an impressive $380,000 bonus.

For comparison, number 2 Israel and number 3 Serbia will award $275,000 and $217,000 respectively for

athletes who top the podium. All three delegations had an athlete earn gold

at the Tokyo Games in 2021.

In many cases, a cash bonus for meddling is just one example of how countries reward their

elite athletes.

...