Olympic medal

An Olympic medal is awarded to successful competitors at one of the Olympic Games. There are three classes of medal to be won: gold, silver, and bronze, awarded to first, second, and third place, respectively. The granting of awards is laid out in detail in the Olympic protocols.
Medal designs have varied considerably since the Games in 1896, particularly in the size of the medals for the Summer Olympic Games. The design selected for the 1928 Games remained until its replacement at the 2004 Games in Athens, where the use of the Roman Colosseum was replaced by the Greek Panathenaic Stadium, appropriate to represent Olympic values. The medals of the Winter Olympic Games never had a common design, but regularly feature snowflakes and the event where the medal has been won.
In addition to generally supporting their Olympic athletes, some countries provide sums of money and gifts to medal winners, depending on the classes and number of medals won. In the 2024 Paris Games, 33 countries confirmed that they would award prizes to medallists, with 15 awarding cash prizes over $100,000.

Introduction and early history

The olive wreath was the prize for the winner at the Ancient Olympic Games. It was an olive branch, off the wild-olive tree that grew at Olympia, intertwined to form a circle or a horse-shoe. According to Pausanias, it was introduced by Heracles as a prize for the winner of the running race to honour Zeus.
When the modern Olympic Games began in 1896 medals started to be given to successful olympian competitors. However, gold medals were not awarded at the inaugural Olympics in 1896 in Athens, Greece. The winners were instead given a silver medal and an olive branch, whilst runners-up received a laurel branch and a copper or bronze medal.
File:Med 1900.jpg|thumb|150px|A silver medal from the 1900 Summer Olympics, designed by
The 1900 Summer Olympics is unique in being the only Olympic Games to feature rectangular medals, which were designed by. Gilt silver medals were awarded for 1st place in shooting, lifesaving, automobile racing and gymnastics. Second place silver medals were awarded in shooting, rowing, yachting, tennis, gymnastics, sabre, fencing, equestrian and athletics. Third place bronze medals were awarded in gymnastics, firefighting and shooting. In many sports, however, medals were not awarded. With most of the listed prizes being cups and other trophies.
The custom of the sequence of gold, silver, and bronze for the first three places in all events dates from the 1904 Summer Olympics in St. Louis, Missouri in the United States. The International Olympic Committee has retroactively assigned gold, silver and bronze medals to the three best-placed athletes in each event of the 1896 and 1900 Games. If there is a tie for any of the top three places all competitors are entitled to receive the appropriate medal according to IOC rules. Some combat sports award two bronze medals per competition, resulting in, overall, more bronze medals being awarded than the other colours.
Medals are not the only awards given to competitors; every athlete placed first to eighth receives an Olympic diploma. Also, at the main host stadium, the names of all medal winners are written onto a wall. Finally, as noted below, all athletes receive a participation medal and diploma.

Production and design

The IOC dictates the physical properties of the medals and has the final decision about the finished design. Specifications for the medals are developed along with the National Olympic Committee hosting the Games, though the IOC has brought in some set rules:

Recipients: The top three competitors receive medals
Shape: Usually circular, featuring an attachment for a chain or ribbon
Diameter: A minimum of 60 mm
Thickness: A minimum of 3 mm
Material:
*First place : It is composed at least 92.5% of silver, plated with 6 grams of gold; the metal value was about US$494 in 2010. At the 2020 Summer Olympics held in 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, the medal at then-current prices was worth about $800.
*Second place : 92.5% silver; the metal value was about US$260 in 2010. At the Tokyo games, the medal was worth $460.
*Third place : In 2010 it was 97% copper with 0.5% tin and 2.5% zinc; the metal value was about US$3 in 2010. At the Tokyo games it was 95% copper and 5% zinc with a metal value of about $5.
Event details: The sport for which the medal has been awarded should be written on the medal.

The first Olympic medals in 1896 were designed by French sculptor Jules-Clément Chaplain and depicted Zeus holding Nike, the Greek goddess of victory, on the obverse and the Acropolis on the reverse. They were made by the Paris Mint, which also made the medals for the 1900 Olympic Games, hosted by Paris. This started the tradition of giving the responsibility of minting the medals to the host city. For the next few Olympiads, the host city also chose the medal design. Until 1912 the gold medals were made of solid gold.

''Trionfo''

In 1923 the International Olympic Committee launched a competition for sculptors to design the medals for the Summer Olympic Games. Giuseppe Cassioli's Trionfo design was chosen as the winner in 1928. The obverse brought back Nike but this time as the main focus, holding a winner's crown and palm with a depiction of the Colosseum in the background. In the top right section of the medal, a space was left for the name of the Olympic host and the Games numeral.
The reverse features a crowd of people carrying a triumphant athlete. His winning design was first presented at the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam. The medals for the 1960 Games in Rome inverted the design, with the obverse featuring the crowd and the reverse featuring Nike. The competition saw this design used for 40 years until the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich became the first Games with a different design for the reverse side of the medal.
Cassioli's design continued to inspire the obverse of the medal for many more years, though recreated each time, with the Olympic host and numeral updated. The obverse remained true to the Trionfo design until the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain, where the IOC allowed an updated version to be created. For the next few events, they mandated the use of the Nike motif but allowed other aspects to change.
The trend ended after 2000, due to the negative reaction to the medal design for the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. The designer of the 2000 medal had originally featured the Sydney Opera House on the obverse instead of the traditional Roman Colosseum but the International Olympic Committee decided that the Colosseum should remain. The Greek press criticised the design for ignorance of the birthplace of the Olympic Games, pointing out that the long-standing feature on the front of medals was mistakenly depicting the Roman Colosseum rather than the Greek Parthenon. The Sydney Organising Committee decided to continue with the design as it was, noting that there was insufficient time to complete another version and that it would be too costly. After 76 years a new style by designer Elena Votsi depicting the Panathenaic Stadium was introduced at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. This new obverse design remains in use.

Custom reverse designs

The German Olympic Committee, Nationales Olympisches Komitee für Deutschland, was the first Summer Games organisers to elect to change the reverse of the medal. The 1972 design was created by Gerhard Marcks, an artist from the Bauhaus, and features mythological twins Castor and Pollux. Since then the Organising Committee of the host city has been given the freedom of the design of the reverse, with the IOC giving final approval.

Comparison between Summer and Winter

The IOC has the final decision on the specifications of each design for all Olympic medals, including the Summer Games, Winter Games, Summer Paralympic Games and Winter Paralympic Games. There has been a greater variety of design applications for the Winter Games; unlike with the Summer Games, the IOC never mandated one particular design. The medal at the inaugural 1924 Winter Olympics in Chamonix, France did not even feature the Olympic rings. Nike was featured on the medals of the 1932 and 1936 Games but has only appeared on one medal design since then. One regular motif is the use of the snowflake, while laurel leaves and crowns appear on several designs. The Olympic motto Citius, Altius, Fortius features on four Winter Games medals but does not appear on any Summer Games medal.
For three events in a row, hosts of the Winter Games included different materials in the medals: glass, sparagmite, and lacquer. It was not until the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China that a Summer Olympic host chose to use something different, in this case, jade. While every Summer Olympic medal except for the 1900 Games has been circular, the shapes of the Winter Games have been considerably more varied. The designs for the Winter Games medals are also generally larger, thicker, and heavier than those for the Summer Games.

Individual design details

Summer Olympic medal designs

Details about the medals from each of the Summer Olympic Games:

Games	Host	Details	Designer	Mint	Diameter	Thickness	Weight	image
1896	Athens, Greece	Obverse: Zeus holding Nike Reverse: The Acropolis of Athens		Paris Mint	48	3.8	47
1900	Paris, France	Obverse: Winged goddess holding laurel branches; Paris in the background Reverse: A victorious athlete holding a laurel branch; the Acropolis in the background Note: The only Summer Olympic medal that is not circular		Paris Mint	59 x 41	3.2	53
1904	St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.	Obverse: Nike holding a laurel crown and a palm leaf Reverse: An athlete holding a laurel crown; Greek temple in the background	Dieges & Clust	Dieges & Clust	37.8	3.5	21
1908	London, Great Britain	Obverse: An athlete receiving a laurel crown from two female figures Reverse: Saint George atop a horse Edge: "Vaughton", event name and winner		Vaughton & Sons	33	4.4	21
1912	Stockholm, Sweden	Obverse: An athlete receiving a laurel crown from two female figures Reverse: A herald opening the Games with a statue of Pehr Henrik Ling behind him	Erik Lindberg	C.C. Sporrong & Co	33.4	1.5	24
1920	Antwerp, Belgium	Obverse: An athlete holding a laurel crown and a palm leaf Reverse: Statue of Silvius Brabo Edge: Name, event, team, "Antwerp", and the date		Coosmans	59	4.4	79
1924	Paris, France	Obverse: An athlete helping another to stand Reverse: A harp and various items of sports equipment		Paris Mint	55	4.8	79
1928	Amsterdam, Netherlands	Design: Trionfo Note: This obverse design, sometimes recreated, remains until 2004, the reverse design remained until 1972		Dutch State Mint	55	3	66
1932	Los Angeles, California, U.S.	Design: Trionfo		Whitehead & Hoag	55.3	5.7	96
1936	Berlin, Germany	Design: Trionfo		B.H. Mayer	55	5	71
1948	London, Great Britain	Design: Trionfo		John Pinches	51.4	5.1	60
1952	Helsinki, Finland	Design: Trionfo Edge: 916 M / Y6		Kultakeskus Oy	51	4.8	46.5
1956	Melbourne, Australia	Design: Trionfo		K.G. Luke	51	4.8	68
1960	Rome, Italy	Design: Trionfo Surround: A bronze laurel wreath and laurel leaf chain		Artistice Fiorentini	68	6.5	211
1964	Tokyo, Japan	Design: Trionfo	and	Japan Mint	60	7.5	62
1968	Mexico City, Mexico	Design: Trionfo			60	6	130
1972	Munich, West Germany	Obverse: Trionfo Reverse: Castor and Pollux, twin sons of Zeus and Leda Edge: Winner's name and sport		Bavarian Mint	66	6.5	102
1976	Montreal, Quebec, Canada	Obverse: Trionfo Reverse: A stylised laurel crown and the Montreal Games logo Edge: Name of the sport		Royal Canadian Mint	60	5.8	154
1980	Moscow, Russia	Obverse: Trionfo Reverse: A stylised Olympic flame and the Moscow Games logo		Moscow Mint	60	6.8	125
1984	Los Angeles, California, U.S.	Obverse: Trionfo Reverse: An Olympic champion held aloft by a crowd Note: The reverse returns to the Cassioli design		Jostens, Inc	60	7.9	141
1988	Seoul, South Korea	Obverse: Trionfo Reverse: An outline of a dove carrying a laurel branch and the Seoul Olympic logo		Korea Minting and Security Printing Corporation	60	7	152
1992	Barcelona, Spain	Obverse: Updated interpretation of Trionfo Reverse: Barcelona Games logo		Royal Mint of Spain	70	9.8	231
1996	Atlanta, U.S.	Obverse: Updated interpretation of Trionfo Reverse: A stylised olive branch, the Atlanta Games logo, and "Centennial Olympic Games" Edge: "Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games"	Malcolm Grear Designers	Reed & Barton	70	5	181
2000	Sydney, Australia	Obverse: Updated interpretation of Trionfo Reverse: The Sydney Opera House, Olympic Flame, and Olympic rings Edge: Event name		Royal Australian Mint	68	5	180
2004	Athens, Greece	Obverse: Nike of Paionios with Panathenaic Stadium and the Acropolis of Athens in the background Reverse: The Olympic Flame, the opening lines of Pindar's Eighth Olympic Ode, and the Athens Games logo		Efsimon	60	5	135
2008	Beijing, China	Obverse: Nike with Panathenaic Stadium and the Acropolis of Athens in the background Reverse: A jade ring with the Beijing Games logo in the centre and the event details on the outer edge		China Banknote Printing and Minting Corporation	70	6	200
2012	London, United Kingdom	Obverse: Nike with Panathenaic Stadium and the Acropolis of Athens in the background Reverse: The River Thames and the London Games logo with angled lines in the background		Royal Mint	85	8–10	357–412
2016	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	Obverse: Nike with Panathenaic Stadium and the Acropolis of Athens in the background Reverse: The Rio 2016 logo and name, surrounded by a laurel leaf design in the form of the wreaths Edge: The name of the event for which the medal was won is engraved by laser along the outside edge. Note: For the first time, the medals are slightly thicker at their central point compared with their edges.	Chelles and Hayashi	Casa da Moeda do Brasil	85	6–11	500
2020	Tokyo, Japan	Obverse: Nike with Panathenaic Stadium and the Acropolis of Athens in the background Reverse: The Tokyo 2020 logo and name, surrounded by rays of sun.	Junichi Kawanishi	Japan Mint	85	7.7–12.1	450–556
2024	Paris, France	Obverse: Nike with Panathenaic Stadium, the Acropolis of Athens, and the Eiffel Tower in the background, surrounded by rays Reverse: Hexagonal tokens of iron taken from the original construction of the Eiffel Tower engraved with the Paris 2024 logo, surrounded by rays	Chaumet	Monnaie de Paris	85	9.2	455–529