Winter Olympic Gold Medal Worth 1,938 Dollars...Triples in Four Years - Oxford Economics

Yonhap News Agency

The intrinsic value of a gold medal at the 2026 Milan Winter Olympics is estimated at 1,938 dollars. This is roughly three times the value at the previous 2022 Olympics (699 dollars). The silver medal is valued at 1,003 dollars, also about three times the 2022 level (352 dollars). The bronze medal is worth 5.13 dollars; its price is much lower, but its value has continued to rise.

Oxford Economics, a UK-based think tank, presented this estimate in an article published on February 10 titled "2026 Winter Olympic Medals: How Metal Prices Have Changed Medal Values."

According to Oxford Economics, the gold medals at the 2026 Winter Olympics will be made mostly of silver with a thin layer of gold plating on the surface. Each gold medal will contain more than 500 grams of silver and about 6 grams of gold. The silver medal will weigh about 500 grams and be made entirely of silver. The bronze medal will consist of about 420 grams of copper. Because of this composition, the value of the medals changes with fluctuations in metal prices. Design and manufacturing methods have a relatively small impact. Over the past four years, the prices of precious metals have risen sharply, roughly tripling the value of gold and silver medals, while copper prices have shown a relatively steady upward trend, lifting the value of bronze medals by about 40%.

Since 2022, the gold price has undergone several corrections yet has continued to hit record highs. Short-term volatility has been large, but the medium-term trend has been supported by structural demand. Geopolitical uncertainty, policy instability, and concerns over fiscal soundness in advanced economies have all strengthened demand for safe-haven assets. In particular, gold purchases by central banks have driven prices higher. This reflects structural demand stemming from changes in foreign-exchange reserve strategies. In addition, inflows into exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have further limited downside risks for gold prices.

Over the same period, silver prices have risen even faster than gold, driving a sharp increase in the value of silver medals. However, volatility has also been much greater. Silver is highly sensitive to industrial demand and risk-on sentiment. It has staged strong rallies when macroeconomic optimism and expectations of monetary easing have grown, and it has also benefited from the spillover effects of rising gold prices. Yet because the market is relatively small and less liquid, prices have at times moved far beyond what short-term supply and demand would suggest.

Copper’s strength has not come from macro-level hedging demand, as with precious metals, but from investment demand for power grids, data centers, and high value-added manufacturing. Despite a slowdown in global growth, demand related to electrification and industrial investment has remained solid. Supply-side constraints have also supported higher prices. Disruptions at major mines, project delays, permitting issues, and declining ore grades have all limited supply expansion.

Oxford Economics commented, "Gold will continue to be supported by structural demand, but silver is expected to remain highly volatile, and copper is likely to retain its cyclical nature," adding, "Accordingly, the intrinsic value of medals at the next Winter Olympics will likely rise slightly, but a dramatic revaluation on the scale of 2022 to 2026 will be difficult to repeat."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.