Feb 10, 2020 – TANAKA HOLDINGS Co., Ltd. (Head office: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; Representative Director and CEO: Akira Tanae) will provide and donate gold, silver, and bronze medals to the top three men and women finishers of the marathon and wheelchair marathon events at the Tokyo Marathon 2020 (a total of 12 medals). The Tokyo Marathon 2020 is organized by the Tokyo Marathon Foundation, and will be held on March 1, 2020; the wheelchair marathon has been an officially sanctioned as an international event since 2016.
The Tokyo Marathon medals provided by TANAKA HOLDINGS are made from pure gold, pure silver, and pure bronze – this makes them unusual and unique among sports medals and rarities of considerable value. The medals presented to the top three finishers are approximately 65 mm in diameter, with the pure gold medal weighing approximately 180 grams, the pure silver medal approximately 100 grams, and the pure bronze medal approximately 85 grams.
For the 14th edition of the Tokyo Marathon, the medal designs are based on traditional Edo komon patterns that have been used to decorate kimono ever since the Edo period. Six distinctive patterns – sakura (cherry blossom), shippo tsunagi (seven treasures), seigaiha (blue ocean waves), asanoha (hemp leaf), kanoko (fawn), and kouji tsunagi (“kou”-character) – are combined on the medals to resemble the collar of a kimono, signifying a fusion of this unbroken Japanese tradition with the overlapping thoughts of runners and the spectators who support them. “Running” is the key visual concept of the Tokyo Marathon 2020, and people who enjoy running in all its forms will gather at the event. With their traditional Edo motifs, the medals communicate the message that “the Tokyo Marathon will be the starting point for many diverse stories” in a design of great originality.
The medal ribbons feature a design based on the tapestry-like Tokyo Marathon logo, in which each thread represents an individual runner, volunteer, and spectator. The reverse sides of the gold, silver, and bronze medals that will be presented to the top three finishers of each marathon event depict the course map and the TANAKA PRECIOUS METALS logo.
The TANAKA KIKINZOKU Group has produced the winner medals and finisher medals for every Tokyo Marathon since the first was held in 2007. The Tokyo Marathon was added to the World Marathon Majors (currently the Abbott World Marathon Majors) in 2013, attracting global attention as one of the world’s six premier marathons. The TANAKA KIKINZOKU Group has produced and sold various commemorative medals other than for the Tokyo Marathon, including the official commemorative medals for the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games. The TANAKA KIKINZOKU Group will continue to produce medals made of precious metals and support various events in a way unique to the Group.
Overview of the Tokyo Marathon 2020 Medals
Material, weight, and size (from left)
– Silver Medal: Pure silver; approx. 100 g; approx. 65 mm in diameter and 2.8 mm thick
– Gold Medal: Pure gold (24K); approx. 180 g; approx. 65 mm in diameter and 2.8 mm thick
– Bronze Medal: Pure bronze; approx. 85 g; approx. 65 mm in diameter, approx. 2.8 mm thick
TANAKA HOLDINGS is also holding a Tokyo Marathon Medal Exhibition for top-ranked finishers in the first floor entrance lobby of its GINZA TANAKA main store in Ginza, Tokyo, from February 1 to February 27, 2020. Gold, silver, and bronze medals will be exhibited on a unique paper-art display that features the silhouettes of runners and some of the capital’s most famous buildings; the front of the display shows runners finishing the marathon against the backdrop of Tokyo Station.
Tokyo Marathon 2020 Medal Exhibition Schedule
GINZA TANAKA Main Store
– Exhibition period: February 1 to 27, 2020; 10:30 to 19:00
– Exhibition location: 1F, GINZA TANAKA Main Store, 1-7-7 Ginza, Chuo-ku, Tokyo
https://www.ginzatanaka.co.jp/en/shop/ginza.html
*Visitors are invited to see the exhibition free of charge
The gold, silver, and bronze medals will also be exhibited on the following dates:
– Exhibition period: February 28 (For the media)
Tokyo Marathon 2020 Press Conference, Keio Plaza Hotel
Through the provision and exhibition of medals that pay tribute to courage of marathon runners, TANAKA HOLDINGS intends to actively support the Tokyo Marathon 2020.
Press release (PDF): http://www.acnnewswire.com/clientreports/598/20200210.pdf
About the Tanaka Precious Metals
Since its foundation in 1885, the Tanaka Precious Metals group has built a diversified range of business activities focused on precious metals. Tanaka is a leader in Japan in terms of the volumes of precious metals handled. Over the course of many years, Tanaka Precious Metals has not only manufactured and sold precious metal products for industry, but also provided precious metals in such forms as jewelry and resources. As precious metals specialists, all Group companies within and outside Japan work together with unified cooperation between manufacturing, sales, and technological aspects to offer products and services. In addition, in order to make further progress in globalization, The TANAKA KIKINZOKU Group welcomed Metalor Technologies International SA as a member of the Group in 2016.
As precious metal professionals, Tanaka Precious Metals will continue to contribute to the development of an enriching and prosperous society.
The TANAKA KIKINZOKU Group is cooperating with the Tokyo Marathon.
