page_title: Giuseppe Cassioli
section_title: The Olympic medal
hierarchical_section_title: Giuseppe Cassioli / Biography / The Olympic medal
caption_attribution_description: English: Bronze medal from the 1980 Summer Olympics
context_page_description: Giuseppe Cassioli was an Italian painter and sculptor known for his Summer Olympic Games medal design. Many of his paintings are on display at the Museo Cassioli di Pittura senese dell'Ottocento in Asciano, Tuscany.
context_section_description: In 1923 the International Olympic Committee (IOC) launched a competition for sculptors to design the medals for the Summer Olympic Games.  Cassioli's Trionfo design was chosen as the winner in 1928.  The obverse incorporated Nike, the Greek goddess of victory, holding a winner's crown and palm with a depiction of the Colosseum in the background.  In the top right section of the medal a space was left for the name of the Olympic host and the Games numeral.  The reverse features a crowd of people carrying a triumphant athlete.  His winning design was first presented at the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam.  The competition saw this design used for 40 years until the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich became the first Games with a different design for the reverse side of the medal.
  Cassioli's design continued to inspire the obverse of the medal for many more years, though recreated each time, with the Olympic host and numeral updated.  The trend ended in 2004 due to the negative publicity in reaction to the design of medal for the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney.  Wojciech Pietranik, the designer of the medal, along with the organisers of the Games were criticised by the Greek press for using the Roman Colosseum rather than the Greek Parthenon.  Pietranik defended himself by stating that the Australian Olympic Committee had instructed him to use Cassioli's 1928 design as a template.  The error had remained for 76 years until a new style depicting the Panathinaiko Stadium was introduced at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens.
caption: The bronze medal from the 1980 Summer Olympics showing Cassioli's design
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