In their annual rankings of the highest paid female athletes, Forbes magazine announced that Kim Yuna took the number six spot. Korean netizens applauded the continued success of the beloved figure skater, in particular praising her for donating much of her income to charity. They also compared Yuna’s success as a representative from a small country in an unpopular sport with the kind of advertising deals American athletes can make.
The annual Forbes rankings put Yuna at number five in 2010, number seven in 2011, and number seven in 2012, and are regularly dominated by elite tennis players.
Article from Daum:
Yuna Kim Ranked 6th-highest Paid Female Athlete, Sharapova First
by Yeong Joon Cho
The twenty-three-year-old “Queen of Figure Skating”, Kim Yuna, has become the sixth-highest paid female athlete in the world. “Russian Beauty” Maria Sharapova, twenty-six-years-old and world number 2 in tennis rankings, ranked number one for income and was far ahead of the rest of the field.
Forbes, the American economics magazine, published a report on August 5th which ranked the highest paid female athletes for 2013. Between June 2012 and June 2013, Sharapova reportedly made $29 million, (approximately ₩32.3 billion). The money came from numerous advertising and sponsorship deals, while her prize winnings only added up to $6 million.
Thirty-two-year-old Serena Williams, currently the number one ranked female tennis player, was number two on the income list with $20.5 million, followed by Chinese tennis star Li Na, (age thirty-one), with $18.2 million. Victoria Azarenka ranked number four, the twenty-four year old tennis player from Belarus won the Australia Open this year and earned $15.7 million.
While the top four highest paid female athletes were all tennis players, NASCAR driver Danica Patrick held the number five spot with an income of $15 million.
While the article did not specify how much prize money factored into figure skater Kim Yuna’s sixth-ranking $14 million, it mentioned her income from numerous advertising and sponsorship deals.
The remainder of the top ten, in order, was filled with tennis stars Caroline Wozniacki, (Danish, age 23, $13.6 million), Agnieszka Radwnska, (Polish, 24, $7.4 million), Ana Ivanovic, (Serbian, 26, $7 million), and the only golfer on the list, Paula Creamer, (American, 27, $5.5 million).
Comments from Daum:
나는잘됨님:
But how much did Yuna donate to charity? Mr. Reporter, please mention how she ranks among female athletes who donate to charity vs. athletes who never let go of their money~
yunalove:
And even that is not enough, it’s too bad she isn’t paid more
업:
All those ignorant Koreans who are crazy about football might not know this but tennis is the only sport where there is equal pay for men and women. Only men get rich playing golf. In figure skating, far from the most popular sport in the world, Yuna has managed to make a huge amount of money with her incredible popularity in Korea. Anyways, the most popular women’s sport in the world is still women’s tennis. Although, of course, men’s tennis is still many times more popular..
megnum:
And Yuna is also donating a lot of money to charity at the same time. From her support for cultivating the next generation of figure skaters to helping the hungry children of the world… Even just going by the amount she has publicly donated, it is significant… I think that she also makes many donations that are not disclosed publicly. She has always been a donor to charity, whether other people know it or not.
부관참시할이명박새키:
What I’m curious about is how much money the Korean Skating Union skims off her income…
cece:
take a look at the rankings for charity donations from athletes, she will be number one
릿탐:
Honestly, if a figure skating star with the popularity of Yuna had appeared in America, she would have received as much as ₩100 billion (USD $89.7 million) in sponsorship money. It’s too bad she never got to make that much. When I listen to American media or sports commentators talk about Yuna, I know that they are wishing that she could have been an American. It’s enough to make them cheer on Yuna more than their own skating stars like Rachel Flatt or Ashley Wagner.
Venom:
And she donates a lot as well
이민아:
It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say she has the number one best appearance and athletic ability
언론표현의자유가:
Even in this hot weather, any time I hear a Gershwin piano concerto [like the song Yuna skated to in the finals] I think of her. I wish her continued success in the future.
제슨키드:
And that is just how much has been reported publicly…she must have made even more…so great…so amazing
Isaac:
If she had been American she would have been a clear number 1 and been on par with male athletes. Then again, if she had been American her podium record might have been all gold
장춘:
make even more
경원할망:
Not being from America or China, just a Korean athlete from a small country, it makes sense she would be ranked sixth…
소주맨:
Why doesn’t Son Yeon-jae appear on this list…is it just meant for an American audience?
환한미소:
And she donates so much of it! It is a blessing that she has been able to donate so much to people in difficulty now that she had become a world-class athlete.
하니몽이:
Always money! money! money! makes me sick. How much longer are we going to go on measuring a person’s worth by their income~ pathetic bullshit.
청운:
Uh oh… ₩15.6 billion in a single year…who is man enough to marry her….whoever it is will be so dae-bak
키티프리티:
I want to marry Yuna…
