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Symbols of Success: Exploring Medals, Trophies, and Plaques in Sports

There are many symbols which are used greatly with sports victories. More than mere objects, medals, rings, belts and trophies are physical tokens symbolizing athletic greatness. As a result, each simplistic title symbolizes the blood, toil, tears and sweat absorbed as already mentioned trudge up that mountain of obstacles defeated capturing the elusive championship crust. This article takes a closer look at some of the most iconic symbols that are awarded to those who reach the peak of their respective sports.

Icon and symbol- One of the example is flowers, which often come with an award/medal/ring etc to the winners of any sporting event. Frequently painted a triumphant and graceful shade of victory. Flowers have always been the bright blossom of success in the grand theater of sports. They are fleeting but powerful actions that help make an athlete’s moment of glory last a lifetime. This practise of presenting flowers to sports winners dates back to 8th c. BC ancient Greece when olive wreaths, kotinos (κότινος), were given to victors in the Olympic Games. Over time, this practice spread around the world and flowers began to be used in many countries in their award ceremonies. Since many years, flowers are marking the victory starting from tulip bunches in a Dutch cycling race to rose garlands in Roman festivities familiar way of celebrating. They enrich the celebrations with their enchanting beauty and charm.

Buckles for The Win

The history of the belt buckle as a prize goes back into sports. They were originally awarded at rodeos and horse shows to the winners of horse races and cattle roping contests. Now, they are versatile in design as quiet, handsome success symbols across many applications. Belt Buckles, mostly embellished with etched logos, bright enamel or intricate filigree veritably express the epic quality of each celebration. The tradition began when belt buckles were awarded to warriors as tokens of achievement, provided they excel in a specific sport and thus further enrich the proud history of the respective martial arts discipline.

Buckles in Sporting events. Courtesy: facebook.com

Super Bowl Champion belt buckleA symbol of football success worth its weight in Premiere Prossetq Gold. The trophy presented to the victorious team’s players and coaches is easily identified as a symbol of their victory in the NFL champion game. Summarizing the pinnacle of American football glamour, the buckle is a trophy item littered with the official NFL logo, Super Bowl number, and champion name.

Trophies Made for Winners

Success has its own trophy, which perhaps first came out of Greece where the ancient aegis was a symbol of military victory. “Tropaion” is derived from the Greek “tropaion,” a word for a memorial of defeat, which in Latin became “trophaeum,” and ultimately made its way into English in the mid-16th century. Originally linked to military prowess, the concept has expanded to celebrate achievement in areas other than battle. Until giving participants a trophy became popular for so-called winners and others to soothe feelings, it was once the Greeks and Romans which bestowed trophies of sorts on evidenced champions from its own Olympics or those declared the winners of its gladiator games.

Panathenaic amphorae hold a special place. Courtesy:Metropolitan Museum of Art, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

Given to whomever wins the tournament, it ranks among one of the top international football trophy. It is the epitome of footballing success on a global stage. At Wimbledon, it is one of the most prestigious stipends and two of the finest prizes in tennis are Gentlemen’s Singles Trophy and Ladies’ Singles Trophy That said, on the FIFA World Cup Trophy itself is a gold plated sculpture of two men holding up the Earth to symbolize world peace and football celebration. The Wimbledon Trophy has some beautiful flower engravings and a main theme with two crossed rackets made by a master, So it is highly praised tennis tournament.

FIFA World Cup and FA Cup Trophies. Courtesy:gqindia.com

Medals & Athletic Triumph

Medals are the ultimate athletic prizes. There are the gold, silver and bronze of the Olympics; there is the ornate greed that comes in marathon finisher and world championship variety — these trophies symbolize what it means to strive. In the Olympics, some sports like shooting dispenses with any aesthetics when it comes to medals and instead goes for a military look emphasizing both precision as well as discipline. Every medal has a tale of relentless efforts, perfection and ambition. Medals as Awards Olympic medal winners have been presented with medals since the early 1900s. The original contents were also different from Games to Games. However, in 1928 a standard design was introduced, requiring all medals to be embossed with the Olympic rings, the name of the host city and Nike — the Greek goddess of victory.

The medals are gold, silver and bronze. Courtesy: olympics.com

Pennants are a Symbols of Victory and Rivalry

Boasting a history beyond just being tools for fans to support their teams, pennants—triangular flags that have long been synonymous with sports lovers everywhere. Heraldic or military were all originally derived from the Latin word “penna” which translates into feather. In the late 1800s they were championship and event-memory items before growing into sports collectibles. From here, by the 20th century turned, this pattern transformed into a team spirit as signs expanded to fill stadiums and other places. We are talking about the pennants in professional sports. While in baseball they represent the difference between league championships, in football they most likely mean ruined rivalries.

Carlton Football Club hoist the 1906 VFL premiership flag in 1907 at the Carlton Oval. The ritual of hoisting of the premiership flag in Australian sporting culture dates back to 1895 and is an enduring symbol in Australian sporting culture and particularly Australian rules football. “The Flag” is figuratively still as important as “the Cup” in the VFL/AFL long after a premiership trophy was introduced in 1959. Courtesy: Wikimedia Commons

Plaques and Cups, Honouring Success and Sportsmanship

Custom plaques make perfect awards for individual accomplishments as they can have engraving. And the slab-like obelisk, from odes to track & field medals to anniversaries themselves literally celebrate successSES. On the other hand, cups are these glassy towering three-dimensionally visual and symbolic metaphors of complete victory. They are the crowns of team sports, metallic and gaudy with inscriptions that speak to a vision of conquest or kinship. The Ballon d’Or goes to the best footballer on the planet every year, its most prestigious individual prize in soccer. The gold-plated football that adorns the iconic plaque is a status symbol for any and every player.

Plaque made for a local sporting team. Courtesy: djtrophy.com

Awards — from the gleaming gold of Olympic medals to the grandeur of championship trophies, they are the currency of accomplishment in sport. Whether medals represent the peak of self-attainment and trophies stand for victors. Personalised plaques recognising particular milestones Every award is a byproduct of commitment, determination and the relentless chase for perfection.

Feature Image: Various prize medals with obverse designs, suspension rings and ribbons typical of medals intended to be draped over the head and hung from the neck| Courtesy: wikipedia

References

  1. https://fastercapital.com/topics/the-history-of-pennants-in-sports-and-beyond.html
  2. https://www.netrophies.co.uk/blogs/news/history-of-sports-trophies
  3. https://symbolarts.com/events/buckling-up-for-victory-the-tradition-of-belt-buckles-in-sporting-events/
  4. https://medium.com/@corporateolympiasydney/award-medals-in-sports-celebrating-champions-and-inspiring-athletes-0ac180b9c372
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