The first modern Olympic medal was awarded in 1896, with designs varying from mundane to ostentatious. Since the beginning of the 2000s, we’ve seen more than a fair share of unique Olympic medal designs that show off what the host country wants to share with the world.
For the Paris Olympics, the medals are fascinating! Each of the medals has a piece if iron from the Eiffel Tower! Pretty amazing, right? And the design is a hexagon in the middle surrounded by radiant precious metal.
Here’s how the Olympics website breaks down the design of the current Olympic medal as the Games begin:
Paris 2024 called on LVMH jeweler Chaumet to design its medals. Globally renowned for its craftsmanship, Chaumet has made the medal into a veritable jewel, with a construction conceived around three sources of inspiration: the hexagon, radiance, and gem-setting. …
The Eiffel Tower has also inspired the unique design of the ribbons for the medals. For the Olympic and Paralympic Games Paris 2024, the medal ribbons will be adorned with the Eiffel Tower lattice work. The Olympic medal ribbons will be dark blue, while those of the Paralympic medals will be a deep red—a mix of the first two coats of paint (“Venice red” and “red-brown”) used on the Eiffel Tower.
Here are all the Olympic medal designs for both the Summer and Winter Games dating back to 2000.
