1904 Olympic Gold Medal Sells for Over Half a Million Dollars at Auction

The first Olympic gold medal awarded on U.S. soil was sold at auction for over half a million dollars. The medal, awarded to American Fred Schule at the 1904 St. Louis Olympics, is one of only a few remaining from that era. It is made entirely of gold, unlike modern Olympic medals which are mostly silver with gold plating.

The 1904 Games were also remembered for their controversies and oddities. The Games were originally awarded to Chicago, but were moved to St. Louis after organizers of the World's Fair in St. Louis protested against a second international event being held simultaneously. The Games also saw the debut of boxing and freestyle wrestling, sports that have clung to the Summer Olympics until the present day.

The sale of the 1904 gold medal is part of a larger trend of Olympic memorabilia being auctioned off for high prices. In 2022, the silver medal captured by Luz Long, the German long jumper who befriended Jesse Owens at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, sold at auction for more than $488,000. A first-place silver medal awarded at the first modern Olympic Games in Athens in 1896 sold for $180,111 when it was put up for auction in 2021.

Athletes have also auctioned off their medals for charity. Two-time canoe champion Yuri Cheban from Ukraine auctioned off his two golds and a bronze for $109,451 in 2022 to help the war effort. Swimmer Ryan Lochte auctioned off his six Olympic silver and bronze medals the same year, with the $166,779 raised going to an organization benefitting children. He kept his gold medals.