U.S. Olympic gold medalist went from $200,000-a-year sponsorship to $12-an-hour internship.

U.S. Olympic gold medalist went from $200,000-a-year sponsorship to $12-an-hour internship

Lauryn Williams, a U.S. Olympic gold medalist and the first American woman to medal in both the Summer and Winter Olympics, experienced a drastic shift in her career and finances. Despite earning $200,000 annually from sponsorships during her athletic career, she found herself starting over after retiring from sports. In 2013, Williams began an internship at a financial advisory firm, earning just $12 an hour. This change was driven by the realization that her sports earnings and sponsorships were not sufficient to sustain her long-term, especially after her agent’s cut and taxes were taken into account.

Williams later pursued a career in financial planning, inspired by her own financial struggles. After multiple attempts, she passed the Certified Financial Planner (CFP) exam in 2017 and now runs her own firm, Worth Winning, where she advises athletes on managing their finances. Her story highlights the financial challenges many Olympic athletes face once their sports careers end, particularly those who do not compete in high-profile sports.

U.S. Olympic gold medalist went from $200,000-a-year sponsorship to $12-an-hour internship

Paris 2024Olympic headlinesmay suggest all medalists are set for life, but Olympic fame can be fleeting—just ask Lauryn Williams.

The Olympic track and bobsled champion earned $200,000 a year at age 20, yet by 30, she was interning for $12 an hour.:31

Despite being the first American woman to medal in both the Summer and WinterOlympics, her post-Olympic opportunities were scarce.

“There’s this misconception that because I’m the first to do this thing—and still no one else has done it—that I’m booked all year long for speaking engagements,” she toldCNBC Make It. “I get things here or there, but I can’t make a living from it.”

“The news coverage came, but the sponsors didn’t. I made $80,000 the year I became the first American woman to medal in the Summer and Winter Olympics.”

It’s why, despite making sporting history, she was forced to start from scratch. In 2013, Williams joined the world of white-collar work as an intern at Briaud Financial Advisors, as per herLinkedIn.

“I was behind the ball because I was 30 years old and just starting, whereas I had friends who were already doctors and lawyers and well into their careers,” she added. “I spent all of my 20s competing, so I felt kind of insecure that I didn’t have any real work knowledge.”

Though she had initially been turned down for work at the firm, she said that the owner decided to bring her onboard after hearing about her impressive background.

U.S. Olympic gold medalist went from $200,000-a-year sponsorship to $12-an-hour internship

Poor financial advice inspired her second act

Even when Williams was earning $200,000 in sponsorship fromNike, she highlighted that her agent took a 20% cut, and then there were taxes.

“The money doesn’t go quite as far as people think it does, even though it was a pretty good living for a 20-year-old,” she stressed.

“I had a 10-year career, so it set me up better than the average person by the time I was 30. But it also didn’t give me the income to kick my feet up forever and never have to do anything again.”

Perhaps that could have been a different story if she had good financial advice—and that’s precisely what inspired her second act.

“I did aGooglesearch after having a second financial advisor that didn’t work out and found CFP coursework,” she said. “I enrolled in it blindly, simply because I wanted to better understand finances for myself.”

U.S. Olympic gold medalist went from $200,000-a-year sponsorship to $12-an-hour internship

After two unsuccessful attempts at passing the CFP exam while interning, Williams finally passed in 2017.

Now 40, she is a CFP Board Ambassador helping athletes make smart decisions with their money through her firm Worth Winning.

“Gold medal-winning athletes not clearing $100,000 a year”

Having now advised various sports stars, Williams knows her experience is very much the norm.

Philippines’ first male Olympic gold medalist in history, Carlos Yulo may be set witha fully furnished $555,000 condo, over $200,000 in cash and a lifetime supply of ramen to go with his medals.

However, for most athletes, a plan B is essential.

“From a sponsorship standpoint, I’ve had multiple gold medal-winning athletes as clients who didn’t compete in “premiere” sports and weren’t clearing $100,000 a year after all was said and done,” she said.

“There are the people that you would call the headliners of the Olympic games that are in commercials and those sorts of things, who are going to be able to retire and never work again after if they organize their finances accordingly,” she added.

“But the vast majority of people are going to need to work.”