A gold medalist in the Olympics might earn up to $500,000 for fronting an advertising campaign for a big company. According to the source, a Kiwi athlete with a high enough reputation might make up to $100,000 per year for as little as six social media postings and associated content each year. In addition to earning money from sponsors, athletes can also make cash by selling their images or appearing in television commercials. The highest-paid New Zealander is swimmer Ian Thorpe, who earned $7 million between 1996 and 2016. He is now retired. As well as having rich careers after sports, some athletes use their time on tour to work part-time jobs to make more money. This way they can afford to pay their own expenses which can be very high because they are not funded by their countries' governments. New Zealand has no professional sports teams so all athletes are able to make a living through sponsorship deals and other sources of income. The country's top athletes often have agents who arrange such contracts. Olympic champions usually receive gifts from corporate sponsors but these are usually limited to items like luggage tags or towels. More valuable items may be given as "thank yous" for helping the sponsor's marketing campaign. It is common for athletes to be asked to endorse products they don't use themselves.