Gold, silver, bronze - for an ordinary person, these words for the most part mean only the names of metals. For an athlete, they mean long hours of exhausting training, a huge amount of expended forces and emotions, and, most importantly, an assessment of all efforts. At any championship there is someone who came first, there are those who took second and third place, and there are those who did not have enough to the cherished pedestal. Much has been said about the winning athletes, but we rarely think about who won the bronze medal. What is the Olympic bronze made of and how is it encouraged, what results did Russia show in Rio, and what prevented me from getting more medals? We will understand all the "bronze" Olympic nuances.
Manufacture of medals
Let's start with the awards themselves. Every two years, when the Winter or Summer Olympic Games are held, the host country produces dozens of sets of medals. There is an opinion that they are all made of natural metals, but in fact this is not so at all.
Firstly, each host country changes the composition of medals, adhering to the rules of the Olympic Games. According to them, gold and silver medals are made of alloys in which a little more than 90% of silver, the gold medal is then covered with at least 6 grams of gold. The bronze medal is also only covered with this metal, but in fact it is made of alloys. At the same time, their size and weight are at the discretion of the organizer. But the diameter of the medal should not be less than 8.5 cm, and its thickness - less than 1 cm.
Manufacturing variations
They approached interestingly the production of awards at the Vancouver Olympics: then Canadians used recyclables - recycled electrical boards, in which, as you know, there is a certain content of precious metals.
Each medal was unique, had its own shape and unique engraving: Canada could afford it, significantly saving on material for smelting. It is believed that these very medals were the cheapest and most environmentally friendly in the history of the Games.
Medal rewards
The award at the Olympics is not only recognition of the athlete’s merit, but also certain material bonuses that the athlete receives as a gift from his country. In ancient times, Olympic medal winners were awarded five hundred gold coins, sculptors created their growth statues, they could eat at public catering facilities for the rest of their days and, most importantly, also attend theater performances for free, the same Olympic Games, for example. Now the prize money has become much more mundane-material.
The country that values its winners most can be called Ukraine: there, athletes receive $ 55,000 for bronze medals at the Olympics. In second place is Belarus - here the champions are awarded with an amount of 50 thousand dollars, and in addition, for another 4 years they receive a presidential scholarship. A nice plus of the Republic is the fact that all preparation for the Games is paid by the state, athletes do not spend a dime. The Thai incentive system is interesting: there the athlete receives a little more than 300 thousand dollars, but not immediately: for 20 years he will receive a certain part of this amount every month. China has changed its policy in this regard, having recently switched to world practice: earlier only gold medal holders were awarded here, while the rest received the right to be employed in sports organizations in the selected Chinese province. Economically developed European countries, such as Great Britain, the Netherlands and France, completely refused the material reward to the Olympians: it is understood that the champion will give his money to the development of sports in his country, so the authorities do not even care to pay them first, and then pick it up again.
And, probably, to complete this “material” section, it is worth mentioning the cost of the award itself. As mentioned above, it varies from country to country and depends on the composition and design of the medal. The Rio bronze medal, for example, cost only $ 3: it was made from 97% copper, 2.5% zinc and 0.5% tin.
Pain of loss
It is impossible to describe the emotions of an athlete with a coveted reward on his neck. But it’s even more difficult to describe what an athlete who is losing his medal experiences. The echo of doping scandals has not yet subsided, because of which many athletes were forced to part with existing awards and were unable to go to new competitions.
As a result of rechecking doping samples, some of Russia's gold, silver and bronze medals were seized. So, Anna Chicherova (high jump), Ekaterina Volkova (hurdling), Nadezhda Evstyukhina (weightlifting) lost the Beijing bronze.
Ban on participation
Continuing the theme of bitter disappointments: athletes were not allowed to participate in the Olympics at all because of the ban on the International Athletic Federation Associations.
Also, two weightlifters could not go to Rio - they recalled a violation of anti-doping legislation at earlier games. For four other athletes, the disappearance of positive doping tests was noted - in this way, and they were not allowed to the Games.
Unrealized opportunities
Journalists estimated that due to the ban on the participation of some athletes in games in Rio, Russia lost at least 4 medals, not counting the previously removed light and weightlifters: Elena Isinbaeva (pole vault), Sergey Shubenkov (sprint), Maria Kuchina (high jump), Alexander Dyachenko (kayaking), Elena Lashmanova (walking) - the results of some of these athletes are higher than those of the Olympic champions. Yes, Russia would not be able to catch up with China, but an additional gold, silver or bronze medal of the Olympic Games in Rio could improve the team’s place in the overall standings.
Fight to the last!
After such a sad topic, it is worth recalling the oddities of the Olympics in Rio. An amazing incident occurred in a duel, the price of which was a bronze medal in the fight in the weight category up to 65 kg. Ihtior Navruzov (Uzbekistan) and Mandakhnaran Ganzorig (Mongolia) fought for the award.
It was impossible to predict the result until the last second: yes, the Mongol was in the lead, but the Uzbek was missing only one point before a draw, after which the judges would issue a verdict. And so it happened: the athlete equalized, and the referees awarded him another point, thereby deciding the outcome of the match.
It is easy to imagine the reaction of the Mongol, who so confidently went to the medal and at one moment lost it. But the athlete’s coaches intervened: they rushed to the judges, trying to prove that the same point was awarded incorrectly, and demanding a review of the results. When the referee refused to review the results, one of the coaches in protest undressed to the very cowards on the Olympic carpet! The other was limited to getting rid of the upper part of his “toilet”.
Discouraged judges still agreed to a video replay. According to its results, the victory nevertheless remained with Uzbekistan. The Mongolian wrestler found the strength to shake hands with his opponent, although, of course, it was clear how hard it was for him. The trainers, whom the judges even showed red cards in the process of “striptease”, begging to interrupt the performance, were taken away from the carpet.
Team results
Despite all the barriers to the inadmissibility of many athletes to participate in the games in Rio, Russia took 4th place in the team event. The best results were shown by wrestlers who brought nine awards to the team asset, of which 4 were gold. No less fencers showed themselves - seven medals and also 4 gold. A rather unexpected bronze Olympic medal in the team all-around belongs to the gymnast Aliya Mustafina, she also has silver in the individual competition.
In total, Russia won 56 medals at the Olympics in Rio, of which 19 were gold, 18 silver and 19 bronze.
Conclusion
What is a bronze medal? For some - pain and disappointment: after all, you could do a little more and be on the highest step of the pedestal with the coveted gold; for others - happiness: recognition of merit and the honor of being among the best athletes in the world - this is why it is worth training more and more; for the third - an incentive: having reached one height, you can safely go to conquer another. Yes, it is less valuable than gold, but at the same time, in no case should one belittle its merits. The mere thought of how much labor has been invested in this award makes you imbued with respect for its owners. Remember that a bronze medal can become much more significant than any gold. After all, the main thing is the result, not its encouragement.