TOKYO 2020 PARALYMPIC MEDALS 

The official Paralympic medals, medal ribbon and medals case were revealed to the public on 25 August 2019, exactly one year before the start of the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics.

The medal design is centred around the motif of a traditional Japanese fan, depicting the Paralympic Games as the source of a fresh new wind blowing through the world as well as a shared experience connecting diverse hearts and minds.

As well as the official Paralympic medals, the medal ribbon and medals case were also revealed on Sunday.

The medal design is centred around the motif of a traditional Japanese fan, depicting the Paralympic Games as the source of a fresh new wind blowing through the world as well as a shared experience connecting diverse hearts and minds.

The kaname, or pivot point, holds all parts of the fan together; here it represents the Para athletes bringing people together regardless of nationality or ethnicity. Motifs on the leaves of the fan symbolise Japan’s captivating and life-giving natural environment in the form of rocks, flowers, trees, leaves, and water. These are applied with a variety of techniques, producing a textured surface that makes the medals compelling to touch.

To help those with vision impairments recognise the different medals by touch, a series of circular indentations have been included on the side of the medals for the first time in Paralympic history.  One indentation represents gold, two distinguishes silver and three identifies bronze. Braille letters also spell out “Tokyo 2020” on the medals’ face.

As part of the Tokyo 2020 Medal Project, Tokyo 2020 Paralympic medals are being manufactured from recycled precious metals extracted from mobile phones and other small electronic devices donated by the public.

Sakiko Matsumoto, Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Medal Designer, said: “I am very grateful that I could take part in these historic Games as a designer. I wanted to keep the athletes front and centre as I conceived this design. I hope these medals bring athletes and the people around them closer together and stirs a fresh new breeze in their hearts.”

The medal ribbons, in the Games’ colours of indigo and crimson, employ traditional Japanese design motifs of harmonised chequered emblems (kumiichi matsumon) in a design that expresses both the festive spirit of the Games and the principle of “Unity in Diversity”. Silicon convex dots – one for gold, two for silver, and three for bronze – are applied to the ribbon’s reverse side, enabling visually-impaired individuals to easily identify the medal type at a touch.

The indigo wooden cases are individually hand-crafted from Japanese ash by highly skilled artisans. The unique wood grain of each case represents the diversity of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. The circular case and lid are magnetised, allowing the medal to be displayed as if it is cradled within linked rings.