Winning Olympic medals ensures place of permanence in folklore

The tradition of awarding medals to the podium finishers in Olympics began at the St. Louis 1904 Games. The design of the medals is the responsibility of the host city's organizing committee, and varies with each edition of the Games.

Behind every Olympic medal there's an athlete; a personal story of hope and aspiration. For some, it's the ultimate reward of a lifetime, while to others it brings back the disappointment of missing out.

World Athletics, the international governing body for track and field, announced in April that Olympic gold medalists in track and field events will receive a reward of $50,000—the first of its kind for a sports federation. And in May, the International Boxing Association—which was stripped of recognition by the IOC last year due to financial and governance concerns—said it would offer $100,000 to boxing gold medalists, “setting a clear example for many on how international federations should be treating their champions.”

“While it is impossible to put a marketable value on winning an Olympic medal, or on the commitment and focus it takes to even represent your country at an Olympic Games,” said World Athletics president Sebastian Coe, in April.

“I think it is important we start somewhere and make sure some of the revenues generated by our athletes at the Olympic Games are directly returned to those who make the Games the global spectacle that it is,” said the Olympic middle distance legend.

His great rivalry with fellow Briton Steve Ovett dominated middle-distance racing for much of the 1980s.

Although the World Cup, the world’s other great sporting event, also awards second and third prizes, my impression is that those are mere consolation prizes—nobody seems to care too much if they finish second instead of third. But winning silver or bronze at an Olympics is not a consolation prize. It’s something you take with you forever.

The appeal of the medal ceremony goes beyond athletics. It answers a fundamental need we have to honor excellence -- a need that goes largely unmet in our public lives. As a society, we don't award prizes -- all we have are superficial glitter-fests like the Academy Awards, or specialized awards like the Pulitzer Prize. The closest thing is medals for military valour and the Nobel Prize, but they don't have the universal appeal of an Olympic medal.

A nation’s population size plays a role in the country’s potential to medal at the Olympic Games.

National income per capita plays a bigger role than population in determining a nation’s success at the Olympics. People’s ability to reach their athletic potential depends upon the opportunities afforded to train in world-class facilities with top coaching, and these opportunities tend to be more prevalent in countries that are richer.

From the inaugural modern Olympic Games in Athens in 1896 to Paris 2024, the Olympics have evolved significantly. The 1896 Games featured 241 athletes from 14 nations, with Greece leading in the medals tally. The Games have expanded in scale and inclusivity, with significant milestones such as the first participation of women in 1900 and the introduction of new disciplines.