With 52 days remaining until the start of the 2016 Olympic Games, the International Olympic Committee formally launched the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic medals at the Barra Olympic Park in Rio de Janeiro this afternoon. IOC president Thomas Bach was in attendance to present the new medals.
“Today marks the start of the final countdown to the first Olympic Games to be staged in South America.”
The medals were made to honor the strengths of the Olympic heroes and forces of nature. The front of the medals features “Rio 2016” surrounded by laurel leaves – a symbol of victory in ancient Greece. The back of the medals feature the Greek goddess of victory, Nike, along with the Panathinaiko Stadium and the Acropolis in the background.
The Paralympic medals were made with a special feature this year. Each medal is a made with a special device implanted that makes a noise when the medal is shaken. The noise will allow visually impaired athletes to know if their medal is gold, silver, or bronze. The Gold medals are the loudest while bronze medals are the quietest.
The video above shows how all of the medals are made. All of the gold, silver, and bronze medals are 500g and made from sustainable materials. More pictures of the Olympic and Paralympic medals can be found below.
I loved the Sochi medals, and thought the London medals were at the very least interesting but not necessarily the prettiest, but unfortunately I think these are kind of rubbish.
Wow. Boring, uninspired, and not even modern.
Rio dropped the ball on this one.
It could be made out of toilet paper and it wouldn’t matter. Let art stay in an art museum. It’s a freakin’ Olympic medal.
It does matter, Swim Mom.
It’s not unusual for Olympics medalists to auction off their medals for charity or when they need money for whatever reasons.
It’s a freakin’ Olympic medal to you and me. It’s not just an Olympics medal to the athletes who have worked their ass off for years.
I am trying to find the dimensions. London was huge at 85mm. Does anyone know the size?
Lane,
same diameter, but 100g heavier than London.
Thank you, DDIAS. I saw they were 500g and was shocked at such a heavy weight. It appears that we are on an upward trend of larger and heavier Olympic medals.