NO athlete outside of the major ball sports makes big money. Some racing drivers make decent money, but nothing like the NBA, NFL, or as we call it in America, "soccer." Cycling is a niche sport, so you'll not see paychecks like those in the major markets. Chris Froome is one of the highest (if not the highest paid) cyclists at just less than $5 million a year. Most pro sports teams are carrying half a dozen players making more than that. Hell, Clayton Kershaw makes 32 million a year and will make 25-30 pitching starts per year. Lebron James makes $33 million a year.

...but if you go into a random assemblage of strangers, 9 out of 10 will know who Kershaw and Lebron James are. Most of the members of my own family don't know who Froome is. But hey, professional cricket players average about $50,000 a year. Which of this whole post is the only reasonable number I stumbled across. $5 million to ride a bike is comparatively as ridiculous as +30 million to play ball sports.