Featured Advertisers
Mon, Nov. 09  -   -  Mobile  -  RSS
  

Make a post about this story on FredTalk. Get a printer-friendly version of this page. E-mail this story to a friend.

-

View More Images from this story

Visit the Photo Place

MEDDLING WITH SUCCESS OLYMPIC MEDALS ARE MISSING SOME METAL

There's a hole in the medal dear Liza, dear Liza


Date published: 2/24/2006

By LAURA MOYER

LL THAT WORK to win an Olympic medal, and what does a hero of the 2006 Winter Games get?

A gold, silver or bronze washer on a string.

Since when do Olympic medals have holes in the middle? Has Krispy Kreme taken over the medal-minting franchise?

Getting to the bottom of this disturbing development required several minutes' worth of online research, and this is what we learned via the official Web site of the Turin, Italy, games (torino2006.org).

The design of the 2006 Olympic medal was unveiled at the end of November with great fanfare. It's said to be a uniquely Italian shape, evoking the piazza, a public gathering place.

It's also designed to echo the shape of the Olympic rings.

Beyond that, each medal has shiny bits and buffed bits, the 2006 Torino symbol (which we think looks sort of like a melted Hershey's Kiss) and the name and symbols of the appropriate sport.

Much is made of the fact that the ribbon is tied on through the hole in the middle, instead of sewn on to the top as with past medals. This is supposed to be a good thing, and it, too, symbolizes something. We couldn't figure out what.

We note this revealing quote from the official press release:

"The concept was studied by a workgroup that included Ottaviani International, a Torino 2006 Sponsor and Official Supplier, and the TOROC graphic team, headed for the occasion by Dario Quatrini, who signed the design."

Aha! It was designed by committee. Looks like it.

To reach LAURA MOYER: 540/374-5417
Email: lmoyer@freelancestar.com



Follow us on
twitter
fredericksburg.com Facebook page


Date published: 2/24/2006