How much do you know about the Olympic medals ?

Gold Medal Value

The 2016 Rio Olympics will weighing in at roughly 500g, significantly heavier than and about the same size as the 2012 London Olympics' medals, which were the heaviest and largest summer Olympic medals in history. Previously, the largest summer Olympic medals were from 1992 when Barcelona, Spain hosted the event. The Spain medals had a weight of 231g, were nearly 10mm thick and had a diameter of 70mm. The largest Olympic medals in diameter were the 2006 Turin Olympic medals. They sported a unique design featuring a hole in the center of the medal, similar to the Olympic ring. As a result, the medals were roughly 107mm in diameter.

The International Olympic Committee requires the gold medal to contain a minimum of six grams of gold and roughly 92.5% silver. The composition and value of the medals are as follows:
Gold Medal: 494g Silver, 6g Gold
(494g x $0.63/g) + (6g x $42.40/g) = $311.22 + $254.40 = $565.62
Silver Medal: 500g Silver
500g x $0.63/g = $315
Bronze Medal: 475g Copper, 25g Zinc
(475g x $0.0049/g) + (25g x $0.0022/g) = $2.3275 + $0.055 ≈ $2.38

*Prices obtained July 25th, 2016 via JMBullion and Kitco.



Had all 812 gold medals been made entirely out of gold, with the current market value, they would be valued at: 812 medals x 500g/medal x $42.4.g = $17,214,400.

The last time an Olympic medal was made entirely out of gold was in 1912 at the Stockholm, Sweden summer Olympics. At the time, the average price for one ounce of gold was roughly $18.93 and the weight of the 1912 Stockholm Olympic gold medal was about 24g (0.77 ounces). The cost of a solid gold Olympic medal was approximately $14.58 in 1912. Even adjusting for inflation, it would cost far less than half the cost of the Rio Olympic gold medal.

The Bottom Line

The Rio Olympic medals were produced by the Brazilian Mint. The athletes to place first from Aug. 5 to Aug. 21, 2016 will probably feel that the rewards are worth much more than their weight in gold.

Watch the video below 

DOWNLOAD HERE