Oregon22 medals give a unique look and feel to first U.S.-based World Athletics Championships

The medals for the first World Athletics Championships on U.S. soil evoke the forests of Oregon.

Inspired by the cross-section of a tree on one side, the medals also feature an outer edge textured to feel like tree bark. The seven rings which surround the logo of the World Athletics Championships Oregon22 represent the seven regions of Oregon.

Medals will be awarded in 49 event disciplines and on each of the 10 days of competition beginning July 15 in Eugene.

“It was imperative that our medals were true to the unique, unmissable, unconventional nature of the first World Athletics Championships on U.S. soil,” said Niels de Vos, Executive Director of Oregon22, LLC. “Months of cutting-edge creative thought and experimentation into the latest manufacturing techniques went into the medals, designed and fabricated right here in Oregon.”

In a departure from the usual die-cast variety, the medals will be composed of what the organizing committee calls the “ultra-modern and durable material of Corian.” Many people are familiar with Corian from kitchen counters.

The Corian, which is then inlaid with gold, silver or bronze, “enables the finely detailed carving of intricate relief work featured in the designs,” the committee said, “something just not possible using conventional medal techniques.

The reverse of the medal features one of seven landscapes that showcase the seven regions of Oregon, showcasing different aspects of nature from mountains and rivers to coastline and forests. These are represented across each color of medal so an athlete winning multiple medals can receive different designs.

The ribbon is attached using a bar inserted inside the body of the medal to ensure both longevity and the maintenance of clean design lines.

The round-ish shape and weight, however, will be similar to traditional medals. At the Berlin 2009 Worlds, where Usain Bolt set the still-standing world record in the 100 meters of 9.58 seconds, the medals were rectangular and slightly curved.

The design and composition of medals have become an avenue for organizing committees to express their creativity and resourcefulness.

The Winter Olympic Games have been the most innovative. In 1992, Albertville medals were made from Lalique glass embedded with gold, silver and bronze. The 1994 Lillehammer medals were primarily stone, while the 1998 Nagano medals were made of lacquer.

In 2008, Beijing Olympic medals contained jade in different shades according to the color of medal won by the athlete.

Tokyo 2020 medals were molded entirely from metal extracted from recycled consumer electronics that were collected from the public over a two-year period.

According to olympic.org, “With more than 90 per cent of Japan’s local authorities participating, a total of 78,985 tons of discarded devices were collected, a haul which included approximately 6.21 million used mobile phones, along with digital cameras, handheld games and laptops, all of which were then classified, dismantled and melted down by highly trained contractors.”

Another innovation by Oregon22 involves the awarding of the medals. For the first time since the World Athletics Championships began in Helsinki in 1983, “Instant Medals” will be awarded to the athletes who place first, second and third. They will receive their medals immediately after their final races or events conclude to heighten the emotions of the moment.

However, the athletes then have to give the medals back. After wearing them for the lap of honor and in the mixed zone interviews, the athletes must return the medals to the organizing committee for engraving. They will be re-awarded in the formal podium ceremony with national anthems and flags raised.

According to the organizing committee, “this additional celebratory component of Instant Medals is designed for athletes to commemorate their individual victory ‘in the moment’ and to share that moment with family and friends.”