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ATHLETICS · 3,683 ATHLETES · 129 COUNTRIES

Athletics prize money

The Diamond League has paid $113,397,000 to 3,683 athletes from 129 countries across 224 meetings, 2010 to 2026. Sandra Elkasević has won more of it than anyone, $692,750.

None of it is salary. Athletics pays by finishing place on the day, so what an athlete earns is a count of results rather than a contract: $10,000 for a win at a series meeting in 2026, $30,000 at the final, and eight places paid in every discipline.

PAID IN TOTAL $113,397,000
A WIN PAYS $10,000
ATHLETES PAID 3,683
MEETINGS HELD 224
DISCIPLINES 41

The highest paid athletes in the Diamond League

Career prize money, 2010 to 2026

3,683 paid
The athletes the Diamond League has paid the most, with the seasons and wins behind each total.
# ATHLETE COUNTRY SEASONS WINS EARNED
1 Sandra Elkasević 2010 to 2025 Croatia 14 46 $692,750
2 Armand Duplantis 2017 to 2026 Sweden 9 35 $607,250
3 Noah Lyles 2017 to 2026 United States 9 24 $530,000
4 Christian Taylor 2011 to 2024 United States 12 28 $512,250
5 Caterine Ibargüen 2011 to 2021 Colombia 10 37 $501,000
6 Sam Kendricks 2015 to 2026 United States 10 18 $481,917
7 Renaud Lavillenie 2010 to 2026 France 16 33 $466,833
8 Femke Broeders-Bol 2021 to 2026 Netherlands 6 29 $456,000
9 Mariya Lasitskene 2013 to 2021 Authorised Neutral Athletes 7 26 $440,500
10 Shericka Jackson 2016 to 2026 Jamaica 10 19 $429,250
11 Karsten Warholm 2015 to 2026 Norway 10 18 $428,500
12 Sifan Hassan 2013 to 2024 Netherlands 11 16 $424,250
13 Faith Kipyegon 2012 to 2026 Kenya 12 23 $423,000
14 Marileidy Paulino 2021 to 2026 Dominican Republic 6 25 $420,500
15 Marie Josée Ta Lou-Smith 2015 to 2025 Ivory Coast 10 11 $417,250
16 Timothy Cheruiyot 2016 to 2026 Kenya 10 17 $416,500
17 Shaunae Miller-Uibo 2015 to 2026 Bahamas 8 21 $415,000
18 Mutaz Barsham 2011 to 2026 Qatar 14 23 $409,833
19 Joe Kovacs 2012 to 2026 United States 14 18 $406,500
20 Dina Asher-Smith 2015 to 2026 Great Britain 11 10 $401,500
21 Katerina Stefanidi 2014 to 2024 Greece 10 15 $394,500
22 Valarie Sion 2019 to 2026 United States 7 20 $389,000
23 Soufiane El Bakkali 2016 to 2026 Morocco 10 22 $388,500
24 Yaroslava Mahuchikh 2019 to 2026 Ukraine 7 21 $382,250
25 Alison dos Santos 2019 to 2026 Brazil 7 22 $380,500
26 Elaine Thompson-Herah 2015 to 2024 Jamaica 9 21 $380,500
27 Ivana Španović 2010 to 2026 Serbia 16 18 $373,000
28 Tom Walsh 2013 to 2026 New Zealand 13 13 $372,000
29 Pedro Pichardo 2013 to 2026 Portugal 11 17 $370,500
30 Barbora Špotáková 2010 to 2022 Czechia 10 19 $365,500
31 Valerie Adams 2010 to 2021 New Zealand 9 30 $361,500
32 Daniel Ståhl 2014 to 2026 Sweden 12 13 $355,750
33 Jakob Ingebrigtsen 2018 to 2026 Norway 7 19 $348,000
34 Chase Jackson 2019 to 2026 United States 7 18 $347,500
35 Blessing Okagbare 2010 to 2021 Nigeria 11 11 $338,250
36 Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce 2011 to 2025 Jamaica 9 21 $335,000
37 Emmanuel Wanyonyi 2022 to 2026 Kenya 5 15 $321,500
38 Julien Alfred 2023 to 2026 Saint Lucia 4 13 $316,000
39 Piotr Małachowski 2010 to 2019 Poland 10 18 $312,500
40 Kirani James 2011 to 2025 Grenada 12 17 $310,250
Sandra Elkasević $693k Armand Duplantis $607k Noah Lyles $530k Christian Taylor $512k Caterine Ibargüen $501k Sam Kendricks $482k Renaud Lavillenie $467k Femke Broeders-Bol $456k Mariya Lasitskene $441k Shericka Jackson $429k Karsten Warholm $428k Sifan Hassan $424k Faith Kipyegon $423k Marileidy Paulino $420k Marie Josée Ta Lou-Smith $417k

Sandra Elkasević has won $692,750 of the $113,397,000 the series has paid, from 46 wins across fourteen seasons. Every figure is prize money collected at a meeting. There is no appearance fee in any of it, no sponsorship and no bonus for a record. The table lists the 40 biggest of 3,683.

The World Championships

Tokyo 2025, and the 49 finals that shared $8,480,000

$70,000 to win
The athletes the 2025 World Championships paid the most.
# ATHLETE IN TOKYO EARNED
1 Armand Duplantis Sweden Men's pole vault won it, and the world record $170,000
2 Beatrice Chebet Kenya Women's 5000 metres and one more $140,000
3 María Pérez Spain Women's 20 kilometres walk and one more $140,000
4 Melissa Jefferson-Wooden United States Women's 100 metres and one more $140,000
5 Caio Bonfim Brazil Men's 20 kilometres walk and one more $105,000
6 Faith Kipyegon Kenya Women's 1500 metres and one more $105,000
7 Jimmy Gressier France Men's 10,000 metres and one more $92,000
8 Noah Lyles United States Men's 200 metres and one more $92,000
9 Alphonce Simbu Tanzania Men's marathon won it $70,000
10 Anna Hall United States Women's heptathlon won it $70,000
11 Camryn Rogers Canada Women's hammer throw won it $70,000
12 Cole Hocker United States Men's 5000 metres won it $70,000
334 athletes paid 49 finals $8,480,000$8.5m
Ultimate Championship, Budapest $150k
World Championships, Tokyo $70k
World Indoor Championships $40k
Diamond League final $30k
Diamond League meeting $10k

Armand Duplantis took $170,000 of it from one final, $100,000 of which is the world record bonus and sits on top of the pot rather than coming out of it. A title pays $70,000 against $10,000 at a Diamond League meeting, and eight places are paid in every final: 44 individual events at $172,000 apiece and five relays at $186,000, which comes to the $8,498,000 pot to the dollar.

The Ultimate Championship

Budapest 2026, and the biggest pot ever put up at one meeting

$10,000,000
The athletes the 2026 Ultimate Championship paid the most.
# ATHLETE IN BUDAPEST EARNED
1 Kenny Bednarek United States Men's 100 metres and one more $300,000
2 Melissa Jefferson-Wooden United States Women's 100 metres and one more $300,000
3 Alison dos Santos Brazil Men's 400 metres hurdles won it $150,000
4 Armand Duplantis Sweden Men's pole vault won it $150,000
5 Audrey Werro Switzerland Women's 800 metres won it $150,000
6 Collen Kebinatshipi Botswana Men's 400 metres won it $150,000
7 Djamel Sedjati Algeria Men's 800 metres won it $150,000
8 Gianmarco Tamberi Italy Men's high jump won it $150,000
9 Haruka Kitaguchi Japan Women's javelin throw won it $150,000
10 Ja'Kobe Tharp United States Men's 110 metres hurdles won it $150,000
11 Jakob Ingebrigtsen Norway Men's 5000 metres won it $150,000
12 Jasmine Jones United States Women's 400 metres hurdles won it $150,000
76 athletes paid 28 events $7,090,000$7.1m

Kenny Bednarek and Melissa Jefferson-Wooden won two events each in Budapest, $300,000 apiece, which is more than any athlete has taken from a whole Diamond League season. The card is $150,000, $75,000 and $40,000 in every one of the 26 individual events, and $80,000 to a winning relay quartet. The championship page holds all 28 events and what each one paid.

The World Indoor Championships

Nanjing 2025 and Toruń 2026, and the 53 finals that shared $4,632,000

$40,000 to win
The athletes the World Indoor Championships have paid the most.
# ATHLETE BEST INDOORS EARNED
1 Andy Díaz Italy Men's triple jump won it in 2025 and 2026 $80,000
2 Armand Duplantis Sweden Men's pole vault won it in 2025 and 2026 $80,000
3 Devynne Charlton Bahamas Women's 60 metres hurdles won it in 2025 and 2026 $80,000
4 Jakob Ingebrigtsen Norway Men's 1500 metres two titles in 2025 $80,000
5 Leyanis Pérez Cuba Women's triple jump won it in 2025 and 2026 $80,000
6 Tom Walsh New Zealand Men's shot put won it in 2025 and 2026 $80,000
7 Mattia Furlani Italy Men's long jump won it in 2025, and one more $60,000
8 Sarah Mitton Canada Women's shot put won it in 2025, and one more $60,000
9 Zaynab Dosso Italy Women's 60 metres won it in 2026, and one more $60,000
10 Nicola Olyslagers Australia Women's high jump won it in 2025, and one more $52,667
11 Chase Jackson United States Women's shot put won it in 2026, and one more $50,000
12 Georgia Bell Great Britain Women's 1500 metres won it in 2026, and one more $50,000
233 athletes paid 53 finals $4,632,000$4.6m

Six athletes are level at the top of it on $80,000 each, every one of them a double champion. An indoor title pays $40,000 and so does an indoor relay title, which is true of no other championship in the sport: outdoors a winning quartet takes $80,000 against a world champion's $70,000.

The World Athletics Relays

Guangzhou 2025 and Gaborone 2026, and the 12 finals that shared $1,067,000

$40,000 to the winning team
What each country has been paid at the World Athletics Relays.
# COUNTRY RUNNERS TITLES PAID
1 United States three titles from seven paid finals 24 3 $178,000
2 South Africa two titles from six paid finals 19 2 $136,000
3 Jamaica two titles from five paid finals 19 2 $124,000
4 Canada one title from eight paid finals 17 1 $100,000
5 Spain one title from six paid finals 17 1 $100,000
6 Great Britain one title from six paid finals 22 1 $76,000
7 Botswana one title from three paid finals 11 1 $54,000
8 Norway one title from two paid finals 5 1 $48,000
9 Australia five paid finals, no title 18 0 $46,000
10 Italy six paid finals, no title 21 0 $34,000
11 Belgium five paid finals, no title 17 0 $33,000
12 Germany six paid finals, no title 19 0 $30,000
13 Kenya three paid finals, no title 9 0 $24,000
14 Netherlands four paid finals, no title 16 0 $19,000
15 France three paid finals, no title 12 0 $15,000
16 Portugal two paid finals, no title 6 0 $11,000
17 China three paid finals, no title 12 0 $10,000
18 Japan one paid final, no title 4 0 $8,000
19 Poland two paid finals, no title 8 0 $6,000
20 Zimbabwe one paid final, no title 4 0 $6,000
21 Nigeria one paid final, no title 4 0 $4,000
22 Czechia one paid final, no title 4 0 $3,000
23 Ireland one paid final, no title 4 0 $2,000
23 countries 292 12 $1,067,000
United States $178k
South Africa $136k
Jamaica $124k
Canada $100k
Spain $100k
Great Britain $76k
Botswana $54k
Norway $48k
Australia $46k
Italy $34k
Belgium $33k
Germany $30k

The United States has taken more of it than anyone, $178,000 from seven paid finals and three titles. None of it is an athlete's money. The relays are a team championship and the ladder pays a team, so every figure in the table above went to a federation rather than to one of the 292 people who ran.

The World Cross Country Championships

Belgrade 2024 and Tallahassee 2026, and the six races that shared $620,000

$30,000 to win a senior race
The athletes the World Cross Country Championships paid in their own name.
# ATHLETE RACE EARNED
1 Jacob Kiplimo Uganda Senior men's race won it twice $60,000
2 Agnes Jebet Ngetich Kenya Senior women's race won it in 2026, and one more $37,000
3 Beatrice Chebet Kenya Senior women's race won it in 2024 $30,000
4 Berihu Aregawi Ethiopia Senior men's race 2nd in 2026, and one more $30,000
5 Joy Cheptoyek Uganda Senior women's race 2nd in 2026 $15,000
6 Lilian Kasait Rengeruk Kenya Senior women's race 2nd in 2024 $15,000
7 Benson Kiplangat Kenya Senior men's race 3rd in 2024 $10,000
8 Daniel Ebenyo Kenya Senior men's race 3rd in 2026 $10,000
9 Margaret Kipkemboi Kenya Senior women's race 3rd in 2024 $10,000
10 Senayet Getachew Ethiopia Senior women's race 3rd in 2026 $10,000
11 Asayech Ayichew Ethiopia Senior women's race 4th in 2026 $7,000
12 Nicholas Kimeli Kenya Senior men's race 4th in 2024 $7,000
21 athletes paid three races $280,000
Kenya $217k
Ethiopia $144k
Uganda $138k
United States $30k
Australia $28k
Spain $22k
France $16k
Great Britain $6,000
Eritrea $4,000
Japan $4,000
Morocco $4,000
Tanzania $4,000

Jacob Kiplimo has taken more of that than anyone, $60,000 from two paid races. The chart is a different figure: it counts each country's federation money as well, which is the larger half.

Men and women

The same rate for a win, and what each programme was paid

$113,397,000
What the men's and women's Diamond League programmes have been paid, with the disciplines behind each.
PROGRAMME DISCIPLINES RUNNINGS ATHLETES WINS PAID
Men's programme 21 1,715 1,929 1,717 $56,784,000$56.8m
Women's programme 20 1,723 1,754 1,718 $56,613,000$56.6m
Both 41 3,438 3,683 3,435 $113,397,000$113.4m

The rate card makes no distinction at all: $10,000 for a win, $30,000 at the final, eight places paid, whoever is running. So the $171,000 between the two rows above is not a pay gap, it is a programme gap: the men's disciplines have been on a meeting programme 1,715 times against the women's 1,723.

What each country has won

Every nation the Diamond League has paid, and where the rest of its money is

129 countries
What each country's athletes have won in Diamond League prize money.
# COUNTRY ATHLETES WINS WON
1 United States USA 644 771 $24,258,625$24.3m
2 Kenya KEN 218 355 $9,852,417$9.9m
3 Jamaica JAM 156 246 $7,553,000$7.6m
4 Great Britain GBR 248 103 $5,341,125$5.3m
5 Ethiopia ETH 147 162 $5,105,000$5.1m
6 Germany GER 132 100 $3,664,750$3.7m
7 Australia AUS 86 60 $2,821,750$2.8m
8 France FRA 177 64 $2,748,458$2.7m
9 Poland POL 79 49 $2,273,542$2.3m
10 Netherlands NED 53 69 $2,252,167$2.3m
11 Sweden SWE 88 70 $2,101,592$2.1m
12 South Africa RSA 54 69 $2,093,250$2.1m
13 Ukraine UKR 54 55 $1,975,933$2.0m
14 Cuba CUB 42 57 $1,759,583$1.8m
15 Canada CAN 67 34 $1,712,458$1.7m
16 Czechia CZE 28 55 $1,634,792$1.6m
17 Italy ITA 101 34 $1,588,842$1.6m
18 Norway NOR 63 51 $1,578,833$1.6m
19 China CHN 105 41 $1,474,250$1.5m
20 Greece GRE 18 47 $1,317,125
21 RUS RUS 84 56 $1,249,167
22 Authorised Neutral Athletes ANA 13 50 $1,190,500
23 Botswana BOT 18 46 $1,180,250
24 New Zealand NZL 18 51 $1,129,875
25 Switzerland SUI 55 20 $1,086,458
26 Croatia CRO 12 62 $1,048,583
27 Bahamas BAH 20 35 $1,029,958
28 Brazil BRA 33 36 $1,027,500
29 Bahrain BRN 17 35 $977,250
30 Spain ESP 63 24 $954,000
31 Morocco MAR 48 28 $927,750
32 Nigeria NGR 16 19 $828,250
33 Portugal POR 30 21 $777,500
34 Ivory Coast CIV 8 22 $776,000
35 Dominican Republic DOM 10 29 $721,250
36 Trinidad and Tobago TTO 18 8 $717,750
37 Qatar QAT 30 31 $711,833
38 Colombia COL 10 38 $600,250
39 Serbia SRB 8 22 $599,750
40 Belgium BEL 59 10 $582,458
41 Slovenia SLO 14 14 $566,125
42 Kazakhstan KAZ 9 17 $547,500
43 Grenada GRN 6 24 $524,250
44 Lithuania LTU 12 12 $499,250
45 Japan JPN 33 12 $495,667
46 Estonia EST 10 11 $478,000
47 Belarus BLR 25 5 $451,750
48 Finland FIN 30 12 $440,750
49 Uganda UGA 16 6 $440,750
50 Puerto Rico PUR 6 25 $434,000
51 Turkey TUR 20 8 $421,500
52 Saint Lucia LCA 3 14 $407,758
53 Latvia LAT 17 6 $333,250
54 Algeria ALG 10 10 $328,500
55 Panama PAN 5 12 $302,500
56 Venezuela VEN 3 13 $299,250
57 Ireland IRL 24 4 $281,000
58 Burundi BDI 3 14 $268,500
59 Bulgaria BUL 14 4 $262,333
60 India IND 17 5 $256,500
61 Hungary HUN 9 1 $223,833
62 British Virgin Islands IVB 5 3 $223,250
63 Djibouti DJI 4 8 $217,250
64 Slovakia SVK 9 5 $169,000
65 Tunisia TUN 6 6 $160,250
66 Burkina Faso BUR 2 4 $158,250
67 Azerbaijan AZE 2 2 $157,000
68 Austria AUT 8 0 $146,750
69 Barbados BAR 6 1 $139,000
70 Romania ROU 21 1 $125,500
71 Sri Lanka SRI 2 5 $124,250
72 South Korea KOR 1 5 $113,750
73 Denmark DEN 13 1 $112,250
74 Iran IRI 2 1 $102,000
75 Liberia LBR 6 0 $93,000
76 Cameroon CMR 2 2 $88,500
77 Dominica DMA 2 1 $83,000
78 Uzbekistan UZB 6 2 $82,292
79 Israel ISR 5 1 $80,500
80 Luxembourg LUX 3 2 $79,250
81 Philippines PHI 1 1 $78,125
82 Syria SYR 1 1 $73,500
83 Mexico MEX 9 0 $68,917
84 Senegal SEN 3 2 $65,000
85 Zambia ZAM 3 1 $64,000
86 Saint Kitts and Nevis SKN 1 0 $62,500
87 Cyprus CYP 4 1 $60,000
88 Sudan SUD 1 3 $51,500
89 Bosnia and Herzegovina BIH 2 1 $51,250
90 Ecuador ECU 3 0 $51,000
91 Zimbabwe ZWE 4 1 $50,500
92 Saudi Arabia KSA 6 1 $48,000
93 Namibia NAM 2 2 $44,750
94 Chinese Taipei TPE 2 1 $43,500
95 Egypt EGY 4 4 $43,250
96 Moldova MDA 3 0 $41,750
97 Bermuda BER 2 0 $34,500
98 Chile CHI 3 0 $33,250
99 Guyana GUY 2 0 $30,250
100 Iceland ISL 3 0 $30,000
101 Costa Rica CRC 2 1 $28,000
102 Argentina ARG 3 0 $26,500
103 Gambia GAM 2 1 $26,000
104 Haiti HAI 1 0 $25,000
105 Uruguay URU 1 0 $24,500
106 Antigua and Barbuda ANT 4 0 $22,500
107 Eritrea ERI 5 0 $22,000
108 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines VCT 1 0 $17,750
109 CAY CAY 2 0 $14,500
110 Guatemala GUA 1 0 $13,750
111 Niger NIG 1 0 $12,750
112 Congo CGO 1 0 $12,500
113 Montenegro MNE 1 0 $11,750
114 ISV ISV 3 0 $11,500
115 Benin BEN 1 0 $9,750
116 Albania ALB 1 0 $8,750
117 Samoa SAM 1 0 $8,500
118 GAB GAB 1 0 $6,000
119 Ghana GHA 1 0 $4,500
120 Peru PER 1 0 $4,500
121 UAE UAE 3 0 $4,500
122 Kuwait KUW 4 0 $4,000
123 MOZ MOZ 1 0 $4,000
124 COD COD 1 0 $3,000
125 South Sudan SSD 2 0 $3,000
126 Pakistan PAK 1 0 $2,000
127 Thailand THA 2 0 $1,500
128 Somalia SOM 1 0 $1,000
129 Hong Kong HKG 1 0 $500
129 countries 3,630 3,435 $113,301,875$113.3m
United States $24m
Kenya $9.9m
Jamaica $7.6m
Great Britain $5.3m
Ethiopia $5.1m
Germany $3.7m
Australia $2.8m
France $2.7m
Poland $2.3m
Netherlands $2.3m
Sweden $2.1m
South Africa $2.1m

The United States has won $24,258,625, 21.4% of everything the series has paid, from 644 athletes. Of the 129 countries, 37 have been paid without ever winning a discipline, which is what paying eight deep does. A further 53 athletes, on $95,125 between them, have no country in the result tables we hold and are not in the table above.

This table is the Diamond League alone. Athletics prize money by country adds the championships to it: $135,290,875 across all six competitions, 130 countries, and the $2,917,000 that went to a federation rather than to anybody who ran. Every country in the table above has its own page there.

The Diamond League, season by season

Every summer the series has paid

All sixteen seasons
Every Diamond League season, its meetings, the athletes it paid and what it paid them.
SEASON MEETINGS ATHLETES PAID PAID
Diamond League 2026 15 624 $9,200,500$9.2m
Diamond League 2025 15 664 $9,188,500$9.2m
Diamond League 2024 15 705 $6,752,000$6.8m
Diamond League 2023 14 640 $6,520,250$6.5m
Diamond League 2022 13 668 $6,052,500$6.1m
Diamond League 2021 12 620 $5,591,000$5.6m
Diamond League 2019 14 584 $8,092,500$8.1m
Diamond League 2018 14 564 $8,062,500$8.1m
Diamond League 2017 14 595 $7,921,500$7.9m
Diamond League 2016 14 730 $6,634,000$6.6m
Diamond League 2015 14 703 $6,668,750$6.7m
Diamond League 2014 14 650 $6,576,500$6.6m
Diamond League 2013 14 714 $6,559,500$6.6m
Diamond League 2012 14 755 $6,473,500$6.5m
Diamond League 2011 14 725 $6,550,500$6.6m
Diamond League 2010 14 666 $6,553,000$6.6m
16 seasons 224 3,683 $113,397,000$113.4m

What athletics has paid, season by season

season running total

The line is the running total. The athlete column counts people rather than payments, so the same name appears in several seasons and once in each: 3,683 athletes have been paid across the sixteen seasons, and the columns add to $113,397,000.

Every Diamond League meeting

What each one has paid across every edition of it

19 meetings
Every Diamond League meeting, where it is run and what it has paid.
MEETING WHERE EDITIONS PAID
Weltklasse Zürich has held six finals Zürich Switzerland 16 $15,100,000$15.1m
AG Memorial Van Damme has held five finals Brussels Belgium 16 $13,687,000$13.7m
Prefontaine Classic has held the final Eugene United States 16 $8,366,750$8.4m
Athletissima Lausanne Switzerland 16 $6,959,500$7.0m
Meeting de Paris Paris France 16 $6,957,000$7.0m
Golden Gala Pietro Mennea Rome Italy 16 $6,877,000$6.9m
Doha Diamond League Doha Qatar 16 $6,847,750$6.8m
Bauhausgalan Stockholm Sweden 16 $6,821,000$6.8m
Bislett Games Oslo Norway 16 $6,747,500$6.7m
Herculis EBS Fontvieille Monaco 16 $6,694,250$6.7m
Shanghai Diamond League Shaoxing China 13 $5,925,000$5.9m
Birmingham Diamond League Birmingham Great Britain 10 $4,417,000$4.4m
Meeting International Mohammed VI d'Athlétisme de Rabat Rabat Morocco 9 $3,742,250$3.7m
Anniversary Games Gateshead 8 $3,504,500$3.5m
London Athletics Meet London Great Britain 7 $3,419,250$3.4m
Adidas Grand Prix New York City UNITED STATES 6 $2,734,500$2.7m
Kamila Skolimowska Memorial Chorzów Poland 5 $2,129,500$2.1m
Xiamen Diamond League Xiamen China 4 $1,675,000$1.7m
Müller Grand Prix Gateshead Gateshead 2 $792,250
19 meetings 18 cities 224 $113,397,000$113.4m

A series meeting pays the same rate for the same finishing place wherever it is run, so what separates these totals is how many disciplines each meeting put on and how many times it has been held. The final is the exception, and it pays three times what a series meeting pays for a win.

Frequently asked questions

How much do athletes earn in prize money?

The Diamond League has paid $113,397,000 over sixteen seasons, 2010 to 2026, to 3,683 athletes from 129 countries. That is 26,771 separate payments, and the biggest career total in it is $692,750, Sandra Elkasević's. Nobody on this page is paid a salary: every figure here was won on the day.

What does an athletics win pay?

At a Diamond League series meeting, $10,000, and $30,000 at the final. The rate is the same in every discipline, so a win in the shot put pays what a win in the 100 m pays, and eight places are paid in each. A Diamond+ discipline doubles the win, to $20,000.

What is the richest meeting in athletics?

The Ultimate Championship, which World Athletics ran for the first time in Budapest in 2026 with $10,000,000 to give away over three days. A win there is worth $150,000, against $10,000 at a Diamond League series meeting, and 76 athletes were paid from the published card. The World Championships put up $8,498,000 in Tokyo the same year and handed over $8,480,000 of it, to 334 athletes and 74 countries.

How much do you get for winning a World Championship?

A world title is worth $70,000 in every one of the 44 individual events, and a winning relay team takes $80,000, which is the country's money rather than any one runner's. Eight places are paid in every final, down to $5,000 for 8th, and a world record pays $100,000 on top of that.

How much do you get for winning a World Indoor Championship?

An indoor world title pays $40,000, and so does an indoor relay title: the two ladders are the same ladder, which is true of no other championship in the sport. Outdoors a winning relay team takes $80,000 against a world champion's $70,000. Indoors six places are paid in every final, down to $4,000 for 6th, and a world record pays nothing at all on top.

How much do you get for winning the World Relays?

A World Relays title pays $40,000, and it pays it to the country rather than to the four who ran it: there is no individual event on the programme and no individual money anywhere in it. The ladder reaches all eight teams in a final, down to $2,000 for 8th, so every team that gets there leaves with something. A world record pays nothing on top.

How much do you get for winning the World Cross Country Championships?

Winning a senior race pays $30,000 and it is the runner's own. Winning the team standing behind it pays $20,000 and that is the federation's, so a country whose four scorers all finish outside the first six can leave with money nobody in the race was paid. Six places are paid in each, down to $3,000 for 6th. The mixed relay pays $12,000 to the winning country and reaches four teams deep, and the two under-20 races on the programme pay nothing at all.

Which country wins the most at the World Indoor Championships?

The United States, on $903,000 from 47 paid athletes and 11 titles across Nanjing 2025 and Toruń 2026. Great Britain is next on $306,000, then Italy on $280,000.

Which country won the most at the World Championships?

The United States, on $1,781,500 from 53 paid athletes and 16 titles in Tokyo. Kenya is next on $714,000, then Jamaica on $450,000.

Which country earns the most athletics prize money?

The United States, on $24,258,625 from 644 athletes and 771 wins, which is 21.4% of everything the series has paid. Kenya is next on $9,852,417, then Jamaica on $7,553,000.

Do women earn the same prize money as men in athletics?

In the Diamond League the rate is identical: a win pays $10,000 whoever runs it, and there is no discipline on the card where the two are paid differently. What has differed is how much of the programme each half got. The women's disciplines have been paid $56,613,000 and the men's $56,784,000, a gap of $171,000 built entirely out of 1,715 runnings against 1,723.

How many athletes get paid?

Eight a discipline, and ninth pays nothing. 3,683 athletes have been paid at least once; another 395 appear in the same result tables having never finished inside the eight, so they are named where they finished and paid nothing at all.

What athletics does this section cover?

The Wanda Diamond League: sixteen seasons, 224 meetings, 3,438 runnings of a discipline and every prize inside them. There is a page for each season, each meeting, each discipline and each of the 3,683 athletes the series has paid. Alongside it the World Championships, Tokyo 2025, a page for each of its 49 finals and the 334 athletes they paid, the Ultimate Championship, Budapest 2026, with a page for each of its 28 events, the World Indoor Championships, Nanjing 2025 and Toruń 2026, with a page for each of its 27 events, the World Relays, Guangzhou 2025 and Gaborone 2026, with a page for each of its six finals, and the World Cross Country Championships, Belgrade 2024 and Tallahassee 2026, with a page for each of the three races that pay.

Where to next

Every season, meeting and discipline, and every final the championships paid

Diamond League prize money holds all sixteen seasons in one place, 224 meetings and $113,397,000, with the ten rate cards the series has paid under. Ultimate Championship prize money is the 2026 championship in Budapest, $10,000,000 over three days, and World Championships prize money is Tokyo 2025, 49 finals and $8,480,000 paid across them. Indoor championships prize money is Nanjing 2025 and Toruń 2026, 53 finals and $4,632,000 paid to 233 athletes. World Relays prize money is Guangzhou 2025 and Gaborone 2026, 12 finals and $1,067,000 paid to 23 countries. Cross country prize money is Belgrade 2024 and Tallahassee 2026, 10 races and $620,000 split between 21 athletes and 13 federations. Olympic athletics prize money is the one Games that has ever paid for a medal, $50,000 a gold across 48 events and $2,400,000 in all, with 97 of the 145 medals carrying nothing. European Championships prize money is ten Gold Crowns of €50,000 at each of Rome 2024 and Birmingham 2026, 18 athletes paid, and a €3,500,000 ladder from Silesia 2028. Athletics prize money by country is the join across all six of them, 130 countries and $135,290,875, with a page for each.

Every event at the World Championships

Every event at the Ultimate Championship

Every event at the World Indoor Championships

Every event at the World Relays

Every race that pays at the World Cross Country Championships

Every season

Every meeting

Every discipline