What is the value of an Olympic gold medal?
Unfortunately for the 339 athletes who will earn the ultimate symbol of athletic achievement at these Games, the gold medals are actually made of 500 grams of silver overlaid with 6 grams of gold. The melt value is just $832 — far from the $1. Jesse Owens’ 1936 Olympic gold medal. While gold medals are plated with a pure gold sheet, it is not the primary element used. The IOC requires gold and silver medals to be made with a minimum of 92.olympic gold medals are not made with solid gold, but are instead primarily composed of silver. The last true olympic gold medal was awarded at the 1912 olympics in stockholm, sweden. On this page, learn about the precious metal content and value of olympic metals.
What country has won the most Olympic medals?
In the history of the Summer Olympics, the United States has been the most successful nation ever, with a combined total of 2,761 medals won across 29 Olympic Games. More than one thousand of these were gold, with almost 900 silver medals, and nearly 800 bronze medals. Beijing 2008 would see the greatest ever medal haul by a single athlete in an Olympic Games. Phelps won eight golds – every event he entered – and broke World Records in seven of them. His record looks unlikely to be surpassed any time soon.
