When athletes win Olympic gold medals in Paris, they are given a piece of the Eiffel Tower
Winning an Olympic gold medal is seen as a crowning achievement for an athlete, so it is only logical that the physical medal symbolizes its significance.
What goes on every gold medal is special at any Olympic Games, but Paris 2024 is extra special because athletes who win gold will take home a piece of the Eiffel Tower, an iconic landmark of the host city.
The Eiffel Tower played a major role in the opening ceremony of Paris 2024. From the flashing lights and the Olympic rings to Celine Dion’s comeback performance, “La Tour Eiffel” showed its grandeur to the world. And now it will be part of the athletes’ medal collections.
What else is unique about these gold medals and how are they connected to the Eiffel Tower? Here’s what you need to know.
How many Olympic medals are won?
According to multiple reports, around 5,084 medals were designed for Paris 2024. Around 2,600 medals were designed for the Olympic Games and 2,400 for the Paralympic Games.
How much do Olympic gold medals weigh?
The gold medal weighs 1.17 pounds. The silver medal, by comparison, weighs 1.16 pounds, while the bronze medal weighs one pound.
Who designed the Olympic gold medals?
Chaumet, the French luxury jewelry and watch brand, designed the Olympic medals. Chaumet, founded in 1780, is owned by LVMH (Moët Hennessey Louis Vuitton).
What features are on the Olympic gold medals?
The Olympic gold medal consists of three parts: the hexagon, the shine and the setting.
The center of the medal features a hexagon. It is a tribute to the French nickname “L’hexagone” given the country’s roughly hexagonal shape.
The hexagon is surrounded by several string-like shapes. This symbolizes the radiant light, as Paris is often called the “city of light”.
There are claw settings on the six edges of the hexagon. The shape is similar to the rivets on the Eiffel Tower.
Olympic rings were illuminated on the Eiffel Tower during the opening ceremony of the 2024 Games in Paris. (Photo: Ludovic Marin – Pool / Getty)
What is the connection with the Eiffel Tower?
The Eiffel Tower was the defining element of the 1889 World’s Fair. The original tower was made of wrought iron.
When the Eiffel Tower was renovated in the 20th century, they saved pieces of the original iron and kept them in storage. Those pieces form the hexagonal figure in the center of the Olympic gold medal.
According to multiple sources, each medal contains 0.04 pounds of iron renovation pieces from the Eiffel Tower.
Gold, silver and bronze medals began at the 1904 St. Louis Olympics. An estimated 1,011 medals will be awarded at Paris 2024, the number of medals awarded at the Games (more medals were developed to account for team events). This is the first time that a piece of a city’s historic monument has been included in an Olympic medal.
How much is an Olympic gold medal worth?
According to Forbes, a gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics is worth approximately $950.
What happens during the medal ceremony?
The gold medal is placed around the neck of the winning athlete on the podium. The athlete also receives a stuffed souvenir of the Paris 2024 mascot. The national anthem of the winning athlete’s country is then played — a tradition that began for gold medalists at medal ceremonies in 1932.
Required reading
More about the Paris 2024 Olympic Games from The Athletics…
(Photo: Thomas Samson/AFP via Getty Images)
