<Tr> <Th_colspan="2"> History </Th> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> First award </Th> <Td> 1896 </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> Website </Th> <Td> www.olympic.org </Td> </Tr> <P> An Olympic medal is awarded to successful competitors at one of the Olympic Games . There are three classes of medal: gold, awarded to the winner; silver, awarded to the 1st runner - up; and bronze, awarded to the second runner - up . The granting of awards is laid out in detail in the Olympic protocols . </P>

Who pays for the medals at the olympics