Rio 2016 unveils Olympic, Paralympic medals

Rio 2016 and the Brazilian Mint have unveiled the much coveted medals of the Olympic and Paralympic Games athletes will be competing for once the Olympic flame is lit in August

The gold medal athletes at the top of the podium will hold a piece extracted without a single use of mercury and was produced according to strict sustainability criteria from the mining to the end product.

The silver and bronze medals, meanwhile, were produced using 30 percent recycled materials.

About half of the plastic of the ribbons that will be hanged around the athletes' necks came from recycled plastic bottles while the cases that hold the medals were made from freijo wood.

"Today marks the start of the final countdown to the first Olympic Games to be staged in South America," said International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach, who witnessed the launch at Barra Olympic Park.

The design of the medals celebrates the relationship between the strengths of Olympic heroes and the forces of nature with each 500g gold, silver, and bronze medals made with sustainability.

The medals feature laurel leaves—a symbol of victory in ancient Greece—surrounding the Rio 2016 Olympic logo. The leaves also represent the link between nature and the Olympians.

The other side of the medals features the image of the Greek goddess of victory, Nike, with the Panathinaiko Stadium and the Acropolis in the background, according to Olympic tradition.

Meanwhile, the medals for the Paralympic Games were made with a special innovation where a device inside them would make a noise for visually impaired athletes to know if they are gold (the loudest), silver, or bronze (the quietest). 

Aside from the medals, athletes will also receive a model of the Rio 2016 logo and its official mascot. — Joseph Tristan Roxas/AT, GMA News