Winning an Olympic gold medal is considered a crowning achievement for an athlete, so it's only fitting that the physical medal represents the significance.
What's on each gold medal is special for every Olympic Games. Still, Paris 2024 is particularly notable because, when athletes win gold, they will take home a piece of the Eiffel Tower, an iconic landmark of the host city.
The Eiffel Tower played a major role in the Paris 2024 opening ceremony. From beaming lights and the Olympic rings to the comeback performance of Celine Dion, La Tour Eiffel it showcased its grandeur to the world. And now, it will be part of the athletes' medal collections.
What else is unique about these gold medals and how are they connected to the Eiffel Tower? Here's what to know.
According to multiple reports, around 5,804 medals were developed for Paris 2024, which note that approximately 2,600 medals have been created for the Olympics and 2,400 for the Paralympics.
The gold medal weighs 1.17 pounds. The silver medal, by comparison, weighs 1.16 pounds while the bronze is one pound.
Chaumet, the French luxury jewelry and watch brand, designed the Olympic medals. Founded in 1780, Chaumet is owned by LMVH (Mot Hennessey Louis Vuitton).
The Olympic gold medal consists of three features: the hexagon, radiance, and setting.
In the middle of the medal is a hexagon. It pays homage to France's nickname Lhexagone given the country's roughly six-sided shape.
The hexagon is surrounded by several strand-like shapes. This symbolizes the radiant light, as Paris is often referred to as the city of light.
On the six edges of the hexagon are claw settings. The shape is similar to those found in the rivets on the Eiffel Tower.
The Eiffel Tower was the defining fixture of the 1889 World Fair. The original tower was made with wrought iron.
When the Eiffel Tower underwent renovations in the 20th century, they preserved pieces of the original iron and kept them in storage. Those chunks make up the hexagon figure in the middle of the Olympic gold medal.
According to multiple reports, 0.04 pounds of iron renovation pieces from the Eiffel Tower are included in each medal.
Gold, silver, and bronze medals began at the 1904 St. Louis Olympic Games. It's estimated that 1,011 medals will be handed out at Paris 2024. This is the first time a piece of a city's historic landmark is included in an Olympic medal.
According to Forbes, a Paris 2024 Olympic gold medal is worth approximately $950.
The gold medal is placed around the winning athlete's neck atop the podium. The athlete also receives a stuffed souvenir of the Paris 2024 mascot. Then, the national anthem of the winning athlete country plays -- a tradition that began for gold medalists at medal ceremonies in 1932.
What are 2024 Olympic gold medals made of? Explaining the Eiffel Tower connection
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What are 2024 Olympic gold medals made of? Explaining the Eiffel Tower connection
- The Eiffel Tower played a major role in the Paris 2024 opening ceremony
- According to multiple reports, 0.04 pounds of iron renovation pieces from the Eiffel Tower are included in each medal
Lee, Hellgren, Kim secure 2026 LIV Golf wild cards
- Canada’s Richard T. Lee claims victory at Black Diamond Ranch in Florida
LECANTO: A dominant performance by Richard T. Lee of Canada. A clutch low round for Sweden’s Bjorn Hellgren. And an inspirational return for American Anthony Kim.
All three players had reason to celebrate at Black Diamond Ranch on Sunday afternoon after securing the three wild card spots available through this week’s LIV Golf Promotions. The trio joins International Series qualifiers Scott Vincent and Yosuke Asaji as the five wild cards who will compete in the 13 regular season tournaments during the 2026 LIV Golf League season, which opens in Riyadh on Feb. 4-7.
While Lee and Hellgren will make their LIV Golf debuts in Saudi Arabia, Kim returns for his third season as a wild card player. He came out of a 12-year retirement from professional golf to join LIV Golf in 2024 but was relegated after last season. Earning a spot for 2026 reflects the considerable progress he has made in recent months.
“There were definitely low moments throughout those two years,” Kim said. “But I believe in myself more than anybody else believes in me, and I think that’s all that matters. I felt like I would earn my spot back if I did get relegated, which I did. I felt like if I just kept my foot on the gas and just kept grinding that great things were going to happen.”
Lee, meanwhile, completed an impressive weeklong effort with a final-round 5-under 65, leaving him at 11 under for the 36-hole weekend shootout for a five-shot victory over Hellgren, his nearest competitor.
The 35-year-old becomes the first Canadian to earn a spot on LIV Golf and he did it in style, shooting rounds of 64, 66, 64 and 65 over the four days, including the first two 18-hole knockout rounds that whittled the initial field of 78 players down to the 22 competing this weekend.
“It’s not sunk in yet, to be honest,” said Lee, who suffered just two bogeys all week, one of those coming late on Sunday when he already had a spot wrapped up. “Twenty-one under on this course is absolutely amazing. I’m very pleased with my game right now.”
Hellgren shot an even-par 70 on Saturday, leaving him outside the top 10 on Sunday. The 35-year-old, who won the Saudi Open presented by PIF last month, had to play aggressively to make up strokes.
He opened with consecutive birdies and overcame a couple of bogeys midway through his round, finishing it off with four birdies in his final six holes to shoot a 6-under 64, matching the course record set by Lee earlier in the week.
“Starting the day, we knew what we had to do,” Hellgren said. “We had to shoot a low one today. We had to basically go all in.”
Kim was in better shape to start the day, in the primary chase pack after shooting a 66 on Saturday. Through 10 holes on Sunday, he was even par for the day and in a three-way tie for the third and final spot with two Thailand golfers, Jazz Janewattananond and Sarit Suwannarut.
Kim then birdied the par-4 11th with a 20-foot putt to create separation, then battled hard to maintain it. The par-4 14th was a key moment, as he twice overcame tricky lies near bunkers, eventually saving par with a 15-foot putt. By the time he reached the 18th hole, he was three shots clear of fourth place and could afford a final bogey.
“Felt like if I made that putt, it could really swing the momentum,” Kim said of the 14th. “I beared down and holed it.”
Lee and Hellgren are both looking forward to the step up in competition with LIV Golf, with a field that includes champions such as Bryson DeChambeau, Jon Rahm, Dustin Johnson, Phil Mickelson and others.
“Definitely have to hit it longer to keep up with those guys and maybe get my short game a little bit sharper,” Lee said.
“Obviously this is going to change our life, for my family,” Hellgren added. “But it’s still just a tournament, and I’m sure I’ll be going to Riyadh to try to win because I like the feeling of winning.”
Kim, meanwhile, is glad just to have another season on LIV Golf. Sunday’s outcome was arguably the biggest moment of his two-year return to the sport.
“There’s a ton of satisfaction,” Kim said at the end of his press conference. “I’m sure I’ll understand that all that work has really shown this week, maybe later tonight when I’m drinking an iced tea. It means a lot to me because three years ago, doctors told me that I potentially had two weeks to live. So just to be here standing in front of you guys is a blessing.”
