# How much is it going to cost Michael Phelps to bring his gold medals into the USA?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-is-it-going-to-cost-michael-phelps-to-bring-his-gold-medals-into-the-usa/460415>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [August 18, 2008, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-is-it-going-to-cost-michael-phelps-to-bring-his-gold-medals-into-the-usa/460415 "2008-08-18T13:48:53Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 3

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**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\
**Post date:** [August 21, 2008, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-is-it-going-to-cost-michael-phelps-to-bring-his-gold-medals-into-the-usa/460415/41 "2008-08-21T02:49:09Z")

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[QUOTE=Spiny Norman]  
Goes with the Olympic ideal - the ancient Greeks competed for a crown of olive leaves.  
[/QUOTE]

Not quite.

[http://www.veitchsmith.com/2008/08/13/tainted-gold-olympic-scandals-and-triumphs/](http://www.veitchsmith.com/2008/08/13/tainted-gold-olympic-scandals-and-triumphs/)

> [@](#):
>
> Olympic victors were set for life. They were given free meals at public expense, front-row seats at the theatre and public festivals, tax breaks and guaranteed appointments to the public service. They even received ‘appearance fees’ at lesser athletic events and prizes such as tripods, cauldrons, precious metal, oxen and women. (Homer, ‘The Iliad’, Bk 23).

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**Author:** ![Cartooniverse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cartooniverse/32/3084_2.png) [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\
**Post date:** [August 21, 2008, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-is-it-going-to-cost-michael-phelps-to-bring-his-gold-medals-into-the-usa/460415/42 "2008-08-21T22:26:39Z")

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I agree that the value is in the iconography, not the metallurgy. However, the IRS and Customs Dept really doesn’t care. If it were solid gold, there’d be some serious squawkin’ about Duties.

The Academy Award statue ( the “Oscar” ) is gold-plated. The value is almost incalculable in terms of career impact.

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