Rio 2016 medals to contain recycled metal

RIO DE JANEIRO - Medals awarded at the Rio 2016 Olympics will contain metal from recycled electronic equipment, organizers said on Monday.

The initiative, conceived by the local organizing committee's design team, forms part of Rio's Olympic sustainability pledge, according to Rio2016.com.

Almost 5000 award medals and 75,000 participation medals for the event will be produced by the Brazilian Mint, a public company linked to the federal treasury department.

"The medals are one of the most important symbols of the Games and we are very pleased that we can count on the Brazilian Mint as our partner in this unique moment in the history of the Brazilian sport," said Rio 2016 president Carlos Nuzman.

Brazilian Mint president Francisco Franco said he hoped for a larger-than-ever contingent of Brazilian medal recipients.

"The Olympic and Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro is a very special event and we could not stay out of it," Franco said. "We hope most of these medals will be won by Brazilian competitors."