Tax on winning USA Olympians

How much is the cash prize UK medal winners receive ?

I didnt even know they got one.

Re reading this I notice 'US' Olympic com.
Does that mean nobody else gets paid?

I read that as Olympic Committee.

Prizes are awarded by the national olympic commitees. UK athletes receive nothing, so I'm not sure why you think our system is "limp"

He noted that most countries subsidise the cost of training for the Olympics and don't charge their athletes for winning.

That read to me as not charging athletes for winning suggesting that they received winners payment, otherwise what would they not be charging on?

It would be obvious they dont charge for winning if they dont win anything.

In that case the american winning money and paying tax on it isnt too bad imo, if they are getting paid for winning when others dont.

The Americans tax everything. Even at Poker in Vegas. Foreigners can get an exemption.

Yeah
I didnt realise they were the only ones to dish out cash prizes to their own winners, I assumed it meant winners get it from the Olympic Committee and then america alone tax them on it.

I dont have an issue if they tax them on this since its not exactly 'game of chance' is it?

USA are not the only country to give prizes to their athletes, but UK does not at the Olympics.

Americans get taxed on lottery wins.

If I won the lottery and they tried to tax me on it, I would tell them to shove it and demand my two quid back.

I didnt realise they were the only ones to dish out cash prizes to their own winners

Lots of countries give cash for medals (which is another reason losing a race to dopers or a boxing match to Russian-bribed judges can suck for people from third world countries). We give MBEs instead. Singapore gives half a million quid but otoh until now they've never had a gold medallist. Here is a list from the Independent.

http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/olympics/news/rio-2016-olympics-money-athletes-medals-a7195011.html

I can accept that.
A sliding scale between subsidy and cash payment with taxation that comes with it.

What I referred to as limp would have been any concept of the Olympic Committee rewarding winners and us both not taxing it while still funding training.
All in all theres a roundness to it.
Pay to train privately, win and get rewarded and taxed or get paid by others to train, win and get feck all.

As I understand it in the UK, getting a medal may lead to additional lottery funding, but I also think that if HMRC consider you to be a professional athlete, they will tax it. I'm not 100% sure about that, maybe someone else knows.