A gold medal is considered by many to be the most valuable athletic achievement in the history of sports.
Only a few hundred are handed out at each edition of the Olympics, creating an extremely exclusive club. The winning athletes will often bite their gold medal to celebrate on the podium.
It's become Olympic tradition. Biting gold was once a way that traders could check the purity of their coins. It's now just an iconic pose, as athletes aren't concerned with the price of their gold medal. It's priceless for most Olympians.
How much is a gold medal actually worth? The Sporting News answers that and more below.
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How much is a gold medal worth?
A gold medal's price is hard to determine considering the sentimental value that it holds to countries and athletes themselves.
It's only possible to break down its monetary value based on the amount of gold, silver, and other metals included.
A gold medal contains about six percent gold. It's mostly silver with at least a 92.5-percent purity rating. It's estimated to be worth about $800, according to CNN.
The Olympics briefly awarded pure gold medals, but the price isn't sustainable. Gold medals were introduced in 1904 and were solid gold for the 1904, 1908, and 1912 Olympic Games. The makeup of the medal switched in 1916.
Prior to the 1904 Olympics, first place winners earned a silver medal and an olive branch. Second place got a bronze medal and laurel branch.
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The 2024 Olympics have a unique addition to each of the medals, however. Each one will have a small piece of iron from the Eiffel Tower included.
Have you ever wondered how much thought goes into designing an Olympic medal?
— KTNV | Channel 13 News Las Vegas (@KTNV) July 25, 2024
No detail was left out of this year’s design for the Paris Olympics. Even a piece of the Eiffel Tower itself was used for each one >> https://t.co/6VFUDp9jWC pic.twitter.com/TYwbeY7Uqy
The iron isn't overly expensive, but its value increases when it's directly sourced from the Eiffel Tower. The addition is a nice touch to make the 2024 Games unique and adds more sentimental value to the award.
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How much are silver and bronze medals worth?
Understandably, silver and bronze medals are worth less than an Olympic gold. That's the case for both emotional and monetary value.
Silver medals are made up of mostly silver at the same 92.5 percent purity rating that gold medals have. Since there's no gold in a silver medal, it's worth about $450.
A bronze medal is by far the cheapest, with its value roughly about $5.
Of course, this is just how much the metals cost. Olympic medals have sold for thousands, even millions at auctions.
Jesse Owen's gold medal from the 1936 Olympic sold for $1.46 million. It's the most expensive Olympic medal sold. Leuris Pupo’s gold medal from the 2012 Olympics was another auctioned off. It earned $73,200.
How much does a gold medal weigh?
A gold medal weighs 529 grams, which is primarily made up of silver, according to Forbes. There are six grams of pure gold and 18 grams of iron from the Eiffel Tower included.
It's not overly heavy in comparison to most things in life. After all, athletes need to wear it around their neck. It weighs slightly more than one pound.
