08 February 2024 , 19:03
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The 2024 Paris Olympic medals will include pieces of the Eiffel Tower, adding a unique French touch for each winner. The gold, silver, and bronze medals for the games will have a polished chunk of iron from the iconic landmark embedded in them.
Joachim Roncin, head of design at the Paris Games organising committee, said: "The concept came after a few discussions. We realized that there's one symbol known across the world, which is the Eiffel Tower. We said to ourselves, 'Hey, what if we approached the Eiffel Tower Operating Co. to see if it's possible to get a bit of the Eiffel Tower to integrate into the medal?'"
Once the company agreed, "the dream became reality," according to Roncin. "It's really a bit of metal from the Eiffel Tower." The chunks were then prepared by removing paint, polishing, and varnishing them for their new purpose.
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The 2024 Paris Olympics medals will feature the Games logo, "Paris 2024", and the five Olympic rings. The Paralympics medals, for the games from Aug 28 to Sept 8, will have the Paralympics logo of three swooshes.
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Chaumet, a Paris-based jeweller, designed these shiny medals. They include six small clasps holding the iron pieces, a tribute to the 2.5 million rivets in the Eiffel Tower. The organisers confirmed that all metals used are recycled.
In 2008, the Beijing Olympics gave out jade-inlaid medals for the first time. But it's only in Paris that parts of an iconic tower have been included.
The Chaumet-designed Paris 2024 Paralympic gold, silver and bronze medals (Getty)"Having a gold medal is already something incredible. But we wanted to add this French touch, and we thought that the Eiffel Tower would be this cherry on the top," said Roncin. "Having a piece of it is a piece of history."
The Paris Mint has made 5,084 medals, which includes about 2,600 for the Olympics and 2,400 for the Paralympics. They've made more than needed in case winners are disqualified for doping and their medals need to be given to someone else. Some of these medals also go to museums for people to see. Any leftover medals that aren't needed will be destroyed.
The gold medals weigh 529 grams and aren't pure gold. They're made of silver and covered with 6 grams of gold. The silver medals weigh 525 grams. The bronze medals weigh 455 grams and are a mix of copper, tin, and zinc. The medals are 85 millimeters across and 9.2 millimeters thick. The medals will come in a dark-blue box from Chaumet, along with a certificate of authenticity from the Eiffel Tower Operating Co.