Usain Bolt makes top quarter of Forbes 100 highest paid athletes of 2017

He’s known as the fastest man in the world and has quite the collection of shiny gold Olympic bling. It’s no surprise so that Mr. Usain Bolt, track legend from Jamaica, has also made the top quarter of Forbes’ list of highest paid athletes of 2017. 

Forbes revealed their list of athletes who are living the high life. Cristiano Ronaldo reigns sitting at the top spot. The soccer player rakes in a whopping 93 million after combining his salary, winnings and endorsements. LeBron James comes in next making 86.2 million. 

Bolt, who lived up to his name at the Rio Olympics last year swiping the golds in what he has said will be his last Olympic Games, comes in at a comfortable number 23 on the list. Not too shabby! The breakdown? The king of track banks 34.2 million. According to the Forbes list, that splits out to a 2.2 million dollar salary paired with the 32 million that he cashes in on though endorsements. 

RELATED: Usain Bolt’s advice to sprinter heirs: Be less boring

A salary of 2.2 million sounds like the makings of high luxury for most of us but get this: Bolt actually has the lowest listed before-endorsements salary of the bunch. It’s probably not a shocker that in the sea of soccer, basketball and football players, Bolt is the only track athlete listed. 

This also comes during a time when he is talking about retiring from sprinting. He already announced that Rio would be his final time on the Olympic stage. Even though he has confirmed that he’ll be retiring, sprinter Justin Gatlin has said that he’s not convinced that Bolt is ready to hang up the track spikes. Recently though, Bolt has said that a family with his partner is something that he is seriously considering.

Through all this, some are uttering perhaps the most underrated name in the track scene: Wayde van Niekerk. The South African athlete only went gold in the 400m at Rio while also lowering the world record to 43:03. He slipped this incredible performance in just 25 minutes before the 100m insanity where Bolt won his final Olympic gold medal.

Here’s the thing about van Niekerk: he’s dropping down distance and adding the 200m to his schedule for World Championships (along with the 400m). Bolt is focusing on the 100m alone. Could van Niekerk replace Bolt in the 200m in London this year?