Olympic gold medals contain more silver than gold.

The last Olympic gold medal that was actually made from gold was awarded in 1912. The specific composition and design of Olympic medals is determined by the host city's organizing committee. However, according to generally accepted standards gold and silver medals are 92.5% silver.

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39 Comments

Melissa Rupard Tompkins

It is a gold medal because it is colored gold. It would be cost prohibitive to make a medal out of pure gold and not practical. Gold is too soft to handle the rigors of the type an Olympic medal would go through. It's not like anyone would sell it for its gold value, anyway! I think the color of it and the prestige of being number one is what is important to the athletes who win one, not the karat of the gold in the medal itself. Having never won one, though, I can't say for sure. Also, by not being a 24 karat item, it is less likely to be stolen and melted for its gold content, something that makes having it around more practical for the winners. Almost no gold jewelry is more than 18 k , with a very few exceptions of 22 k or 24 k. Items like that quickly lose their shape and become marred due to the softness of the metal in its pure form. FYI

PlayerROYST

Melissa Rupard Tompkins, who as been on googol

Chrissie

Constant neon turnip, I was wondering that, too.

Constant neon turnip

Melissa Rupard Tompkins, what rigors? You're not supposed to wear it to do the housework...

Spc Kook Dude

Good question.

Toni Tanouye

Melissa Rupard Tompkins, Silver is much softer than gold. I'm a goldsmith. Cost prohibitive? Not likely.

Don Racette

Suzanne Beer We two experts got it.

Cheryl Love

Melissa Rupard Tompkins, Chinese people in particular, and some other cultures (Malaysia,,India), often have gold jewelry of 22k gold. They have a strong belief that anything less is inferior.

Cheryl Love

Silver costs a fraction of the price of gold. Gold is malleable. Not only would it be very expensive to make the medals from pure gold, they would be soft metal.