How 2020 Tokyo Olympic Medals are Made?
How 2020 Tokyo Olympic Medals are Made?
Olympic games - one of the most prestigious achievements in sports.
Are Olympic Medals really made of gold?The answer is no. Olympic gold medals are not made of pure gold now. They are just plated with it. In fact, the last time pure gold medals were used, dates back to the 1912 Stockholm Games.
How are medals made of?
Current guidelines prescribed by the International Olympics Committee (IOC) say that gold medals should contain a minimum of 6 grams of gold. What forms the bulk of the medal is actually silver.
How big should medals be?
According to the IOC, medals should be at least 60mm in diameter and 3mm thick.
Design guidelines:
The IOC stipulates that Olympic medals should have:
- Nike, the Greek goddess of victory, in front of the Panathinaikos Stadium.
- The official name of the respective Games, in this case, Games of the XXXII Olympiad Tokyo 2020.
- The Olympic five rings symbol.
Tokyo Olympics- Design of the medals
Organisers allowed the public to choose the design by conducting a competition open to designers, professionals and students. The competitions attracted over 400 entries. According to the Tokyo 2020 organisers, “The medals resemble rough stones that have been polished and now shine, with “light” and “brilliance” their overall themes. Their design is intended to symbolise diversity and represent a world where people who compete in sports and work hard are honoured. The brilliance of the medals signifies the warm glow of friendship symbolising people all over the world holding hands.”
How they made 2020 Olympic medals?
Tokyo Olympics, medals have been made from recycled electronic gadgets - a nod to its commitment to be eco-friendly and the country's technological advancement. Citizens have personally donated their gadgets for this purpose, to encourage a sense of participation and direct association with the Games.
The process began in April 2017, when mobile phone collection commenced. A whopping 1,621 out of 1,719 municipalities throughout the nation participated in donating old mobile phones.
That 6.21 million recycled mobile phones from Japanese citizens. After collecting the phones, the recycling process commenced which included dismantling and sorting through all of the material. From there, the materials were smelted and refined until they became usable metals for the medals.The medals for the Games are made entirely from 78,985 tons of recycled electronics. 30.3kg of gold, 4,100kg of silver and 2,700kg of bronze was collected from the recycled materials.
Medal Specifications
- Diameter: 85mm.
- Thinnest part: 7.7mm.
- Thickest part: 12.1mm.
- Gold weight: about 556g.
- Silver weight: about 550g.
- Bronze weight: about 450g .
- Gold composition: more than 6 grams of gold plating on pure silver.
- Silver composition: pure silver.
- Bronze composition: red brass (95% copper and 5% zinc).
- On the side of medal, the name of the event will be engraved in English.
Design of the medal ribbon
The ribbon will employ the traditional Japanese design motifs found in ichimatsu moyo (harmonised chequered patterns) and kasane no irome (traditional kimono layering techniques) in a modern presentation. Silicone convex lines are applied on the surface of the ribbon so that anyone can recognise the type of medal (gold, silver or bronze) by simply touching it. Chemically recycled polyester fibres that produce less CO2 during their manufacturing process are used.
Worth of Tokyo 2020 Olympic Medal
Combined, the gold and silver composition’s value for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics gold medal is approximately worth $812.04. And the value for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics silver medal is approximately worth $461.29.
But no matter the actual value of all these medals, to compete on the world stage of the Olympics, one of the most prestigious sports competitions, is truly priceless. Dillon Gage Metals wishes every Olympian luck and sends their support to each nation’s competitors during the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.
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