On the obverse, a winter sports athlete, arms open, is
holding a pair of skates in his right hand and in his
left a pair of skis. In the background, the Alps with
the Mont Blanc. On the reverse, a 14-line long inscription.
"CHAMONIX MONT-BLANC SPORTS D'HIVER 25 JANVIER -
5 FEVRIER 1924 ORGANISES PAR LE COMITE OLYMPIQUE FRANCAIS
SOUS LE HAUT PATRONAGE DU COMITE INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIQUE
A L'OCCASION DE LA CELEBRATION DE LA VIIIe OLYMPIADE".
[Chamonix Mont-Blanc Winter Sports 25 January-5 February
1924, organized by the French Olympic Committee under
the high patronage of the International Olympic Committee
on the occasion of the celebration of the VIII Olympiad].
As was the case with the medal for the Paris Games, the
design of the Chamonix medal was also put out to tender.
It was the engraver Raoul B?nard who was finally chosen.
There were 2.000 copies made in the workshops of the
Paris mint.
1928
St. Moritz
On the obverse, a skater with her arms spread out, surrounded
by snow crystals. The medals were made by Huguenin Freres,
Le Locle. The reverse has the Olympic rings at the top
with the inscription " II. JEUX OLYMPIQUES D'HIVER
ST.-MORITZ 1928" underneath. On each side there
is an olive branch.
1932
Lake Placid
Placid On the obverse, in the top half, a winged goddess
above the clouds holding a laurel crown in her right
hand. In the background, the Adirondack mountains with,
at their feet, a winter sports stadium, ski jump and
the Lake Placid landscape. The curved shape of the medal
symbolizes the ridges of ancient columns. On the reverse,
in the top half the Olympic rings, under which a laurel
crown. In the middle, the inscription " III OLYMPIC
WINTER GAMES LAKE PLACID 1932".
1936
Garmish-Partenkirchen
On the obverse, in the upper half, an ancient chariot
pulled by three horses, driving on a triumphal arch composed
of four rays. The Goddess of Victory sits on the chariot
holding a laurel crown. In the bottom half, in front
of a picture, an illustration of winter sports equipment
with some examples. Around, there is the inscription “GARMISCH-PARTENKIRCHEN”.
On the reverse, which is deliberately simple, the Olympic
rings and the inscription “IV OLYMPISCHE WINTERSPIELE
1936”.
1948
St. Moritz
On the obverse, in between two snow crystals, the inscription
"Vmes JEUX OLYMPIQUES D'HIVER ST.-MORITZ 1948".
On the reverse, a hand holding a lit torch with the Olympic
Rings in the background. Six snow crystals decorate the
empty space right and left. At the top, curving round,
the motto
"Citius, Altius, Fortius". The medals were
made by Huguenin Freres from Le Locle.
1952
Oslo
On the obverse, the Olympic rings with a superimposed
torch, a composition based on the design by the Greek
artist Vasos Falireas approved by the International Olympic
Committee. In the background "Olympia" in Greek.
Around the design, the Olympic motto "Citius Altius
Fortius"
and the inscription "Olympic Games", only in
French. The reverse, designed by Knut Yran, included
the inscription
"De VI Olympiske Vinterleker Oslo 1952". complemented
by the pictogram of the Oslo Town Hall and three snowflakes.
1956
Cortina d'Ampezzo
On the obverse, the head of an idealized woman, crowned
with the five rings. The Olympic flame appears in the
foreground. The inscription "VII GIOCHI OLIMPICI
INVERNALI"
surrounds the scene. On the reverse, Mount Pomagagnon,
one of the principal symbols of these Games, topped by
a snow crystal. The inscription around reads: "CITIUS
ALTIUS FORTIUS - CORTINA 1956".
1960
Squaw Valley
On the obverse and surrounded by the inscription "VIII
OLYMPIC-WINTER GAMES", the profile of a young woman
and, in the background, that of a young man, symbolizing
the youth of America and the world. The reverse remained
sober with the Olympic rings and with the motto "CITIUS-ALTIUS-FORTIUS"
surrounding the top half. The space in the middle of
the bottom half was reserved for the name of the sport
in accordance with the new rule of the Olympic Charter.
A total of 60 gold, silver and bronze medals were made.
1964
Innsbruck
The medal was created by the Viennese artist Martha Coufal.
On the obverse, an imposing Alpine scene with the inscription
"INNSBRUCK 1964" going round it. For the first
time, the name of the discipline appeared on the medal
at the foot of the mountain. On the reverse, the official
emblem with the coat of arms of the City of Innsbruck
linked with the Olympic rings and with the inscription "IX
- OLYMPISCHE WINTERSPIELE" going round it. The medals
were made at the Austrian mint in Vienna. A total of
61 copies in gold, silver and bronze were made.
1968
Grenoble
On the obverse, the official emblem designed by Roger
Excoffon. On the reverse, the pictogram of the relevant
discipline, also designed by Roger Excoffon. The process
used was a photographic transfer onto acid-impregnated
steel. The engraving and finishing work was done by the
Coins and Medals Administration in Paris. For the first
time in the history of the Olympic Games, a medal was
made for each discipline. In accordance with article
43 of the Olympic regulations, the first and second place
medals were made of 925/000 standard silver. The winners’
medal was covered with six grams of pure gold.
1972
Sapporo
On the obverse, some lines cast slightly in relief represent
the soft, feathery snow as well as the sharp, pointed
ice- evocative of a typical Japanese scene of peace and
serenity. The obverse was designed by Kazumi Yagi. On
the reverse side, there is the inscription "XI Olympic
Winter Games, Sapporo'72" in English and Japanese
and the official emblem of the Games. The reverse was
designed by Ikko Tanaka. The medals were made at the
Mint Bureau of the Finance Ministry. 267 medals in total,
per category 89, including a number of spare ones.
1976
Innsbruck
As was the case for the 1964 Innsbruck Games, the winners’
medal was created by the Viennese artist Martha Coufal-Hartl.
The medals were produced by the Austrian mint in Vienna.
The obverse depicts the emblem of the Games (the same
as the 1964 Games), comprising the Olympic rings and
the coat of arms of the city showing the bridge on the
Inn which gives the city of Innsbruck its name. For centuries,
this bridge has been the link between the old town and
the Hotting district. It symbolizes friendship and the
people of the world coming together.
1980
Lake Placid
On the obverse, a hand holds the Olympic torch against
a mountain background together with the Olympic rings
and the text "XIII Olympic Winter Games". On
the reverse, a pine branch with cones, the official emblem
and the inscription "Lake Placid 1980".
1984
Sarajevo
On the obverse, the official emblem, a stylized snowflake
with the Olympic rings above and the words "XIV
Zimske Olimpijske Igre - Sarajevo 1984".
On the reverse, the stylized head of an athlete crowned
with a laurel wreath. In all, 285 medals were struck
at the Majdanpek mint in Belgrade and 222 were awarded.
1988
Calgary
On the obverse, the official emblem and the words “XVes
Jeux Olympiques d’hiver, XV Olympic Winter Games,
Calgary 1988”. On the reverse, the profile of an
athlete crowned with an olive wreath and an Indian with
a headdress composed of ski sticks, a bob, skis, skate
blades, a stick, a luge and a rifle.
1992
Albertville
Created for the first time in glass, set with gold, silver
and bronze, the medals were entirely hand-made. Detailed
and precise work required several different stages of
production. The production of a medal required the contribution
of 35 people and took several hundred hours for Lalique’s
to create the 330 medals. On the obverse, the five Olympic
rings can be seen in the foreground, with a valley in
the background, in gradation, thus giving the impression
of perspective. On the upper part of the medal is an
intagliated stylized laurel branch featuring the words: "XVI
Olympic Winter Games" (in French and English). On
the reverse of the medal, decorative motif and the five
rings are intagliated in the colorless glass. The lines
symbolize the mountains.
1994
Lillehamer
Ingjerd Hanevold, who created the medals, says she designed
them to be "humorous, sober and recognizable" and
that their design "is Norwegian through and through".
Her innovative surprise was to use granite, sparagmite
to be precise, as the basic material. "I tried to
create something that reflects what Norwegians like and
appreciate, i.e. nature. There is plenty of granite in
our country and it is beautiful in its simplicity. I
think that, thanks to the other components (gold, silver
and bronze), the medals are very stylish."
1998
Nagano
To convey local characteristics, the medals were created
in lacquer (Kiso lacquer). The decoration technique adopted
was embossed gilding (or Maki-e) with so-called shippoyaki
(i.e. cloisonne techniques) and precision metalwork.
The obverse represents the rising sun in Maki-e, surrounded
by olive branches and accompanied by the emblem in cloisonne.
The reverse is mainly in lacquer. It represents the emblem
of the Games in Maki-e, with the sun rising over the
Shinshu mountains. The lacquered parts were done individually
by artists from the Kiso region. The medals had a diameter
of 80mm with a thickness of 9,7mm. The gold medal weighed
256g, the silver 250g and the bronze 230g.
2002
Salt Lake City
The gold and silver medals weigh 567 gram. The bronze
medals weigh 454 gram (16 ounces). For the first time
in Olympic history, the medals vary for each sport, featuring
16 unique artists' renderings. On the front of the medals,
an athlete bursts from flames carrying a torch representing
the resilience of the human spirit and the power to inspire.
The Olympic Rings anchor the image of the athlete while
the 2002 Games' theme, "Light the Fire Within" is
etched into the medal, marking the first time that an
organizing committee's vision statement is included on
a medal.
On the back of the medals, Nike, the Greek goddess of
victory, holds a small victory leaf, symbolizing the
olive wreaths that were presented to winners of the ancient
Olympic Games. Within Nike's embrace is an illustration
of the event for which each medal is being presented.
Also imprinted on the back of each medal is the Salt
Lake 2002 crystal emblem and the name of the event. At
the base of the ribbon loop is the Roman numeral XIX,
signifying the XIX Olympic Winter Games.
The medals were designed in the shape of river rocks,
like those found in Utah's streams and rivers. Each medal
is hand-finished and is slightly different from the other
medals similar to individual rocks sculpted by water
and wind.
2006
Torino
The
medal concept was worked upon by Ottaviani International
and the TOROC graphic team, headed by Dario Quatrini.
The medal is round with an empty space at the
centre, representing the Italian piazza. The
medal was wrapped up in its ribbon, which, unlike
in previous Games, was not sewn to its top. The
front of the medal includes the graphic elements
of the Games, while the back of the medal features
the pictogram of the sports discipline in which
the medal was won. To highlight the three-dimensional
characteristics of the medal, its surface has
been carefully made using full and empty spaces,
with shiny and satiny textures.
Quatrini,
who created the design for the medals, incorporated
views, ideas and models from Italian history and
its tradition of forms and manufacturing: rings,
ancient coins and ornaments. The solution of the
circle with the space at the centre links all the
basic themes and motifs of the Turin Games and embodies
the leitmotiv of Torino 2006 – the piazza.
The medal is also round like the Olympic rings or
a symbolic victory ring and, with its open space
at its centre, it reveals the place where the heart
beats, the symbol of life itself. The medal is only
complete, however, when it is hanging geometrically
from the athlete’s neck, lying on its chest,
circling and revealing the area near its heart and
focusing attention on the athlete’s vital energy
and human emotions.