Gold medal winners to get hefty bonuses

China's Olympic gold medalists will each get a tax-free bonus of 350,000 yuan ($51,000), almost double that paid out after the 2004 Athens Games, local media reported yesterday.

The awards are 150,000 yuan more than those given to Chinese champions in Athens and a massive increase on the 6,000 yuan paid after the 1984 Los Angeles Games, at which China won 15 golds, the Beijing News reported yesterday, citing Xiao Shan, deputy head of the General Administration of Sports.

China won 51 golds, more than any other nation, at the Games. In some team events, such as the synchronized diving, each athlete on the team received a medal. Every medalist will be rewarded, Xiao said.