What Are Olympic Medals Really Made Of?

Sports awards in San Jose

Sports awards have been given to star athletes for thousands of years. The winners of the original Greek Olympics were awarded olive branches, and now Olympic athletes are awarded medals. Depending on their placement, winners may be awarded a gold, silver, or bronze medal. However, these medals are not made of pure gold, silver, or bronze anymore. Continue reading to see the materials that typically make up Olympic medals and personalized trophies in San Jose and Santa Clara.

As seen in the video, the 1912 Olympic games were the last time a medal or sports award was made of pure gold. Now, The International Olympic Committee requires that gold medals only need to have six grams of gold. The rest is made up of silver and copper. Bronze awards are also made of tin, copper, and zinc. Silver awards are almost completely made of silver.