(Jesse Owens 1936 Olympic Games Berlin, Germany)
For those that do not know, Olympic Gold medals are NOT made of pure Gold. As a matter of fact, they haven't been made of pure Gold since 1912! The Gold medals of today contain only about 1.34% of actual Gold. The rest Is composed of sterling silver. Actual price of todays Gold medal: About$564 dollars. The thing that makes a Gold medal valuable, Is It's story. For example, Jesse Owens' track and field medal from the 1936 Olympic games. It was auctioned off for nearly $1.5 million dollars! Owens, was an African American to participate In Nazi Germany. He won four medals. Despite the racial tension of the event, Owens crushed Hitler's myth of total aryan control. So, If the story behind the atheletes Is what gives the medals their value, just imagine what Michael Phelp's medals (27 medals In total at the time of this post) will be worth In the future! Just something to think about...