While Adlington can look forward to some new shoes, China rewards gold medal winners with riches for life - as do Russians and Koreans



Rebecca Adlington's reward for winning the first gold by a British woman for almost half a century in the Olympic pool may only be a couple of pairs of designer shoes, but athletes from other countries are becoming millionaires overnight.

The taste of success: Chen Xiexia's gold medal will clinch financial security for her and her family for life

Nowhere are the rewards greater than in the host nation with China desperate to overtake the United States and top the medals table.



Chinese athletes who win gold are being rewarded with a package that exceeds £1million, including both a kilogram of gold and tax-free status for their winnings.



Weightlifter Chen Xiexia, the 25-year-old who collected China's first gold medal of the Beijing Games, has already admitted her promised rewards are so great she can buy herself a new home and one for parents, who are farmers.



The rewards come from a variety of sources - a foundation launched by a Hong Kong philanthropist and entrepreneur has given every Chinese athlete since 1984 a kilogram of gold and nearly £50,000 in cash, while the General Administration of Sport in China offers cash payments as do provincial governments.



The authorities are also considering a lifetime Olympic pension for the winners of gold in Beijing, a programme already in operation in South Korea.



By contrast, after unexpectedly winning the 400m freestyle, Adlington joked she was hoping that someone might give her a car to replace her battered Renault Clio.



Cashing in: India's first-ever gold medal winner Abhinav Bindra will make 'tens of millions' from his success

As a high performance athlete, she receives around £75,000 in support from British sport but, like other British gold medal winners, there is nothing other than glory - and potential advertising and sponsors - for winning.



However, China is not alone in offering incentives or rewards.



Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin announced while visiting his country's 467 athletes in Beijing at the weekend that traditional prize money would be doubled with a gold medal worth about £85,000 each, a silver £48,000 and a bronze £32,000.



Singapore has the greatest single payment for a gold medal, offering £420,000, South Korea offers £22,000, Japan around £15,000, the USA £13,500, Germany £12,000 and Canada £11,000,



But the biggest winner of this Olympics is likely to be 24-year-old marksman Abhinav Bindra, who won India's first ever individual Olympic gold medal in the men's 10m air rifle. Already from a wealthy family, he has become an instant hero to a nation of 1.1 billion people and experts say his earning potential runs into 'tens of millions.'