When the Olympic Games open this week in Beijing, athletes will, of course, be competing for those top three medals. What they won't be competing for, however, are simply the usual three metals.

For the first time in Olympic history, winners will don more than just gold, silver, and bronze. In honor of Chinese culture, where jade plays an important role, the stone has been incorporated into the medals. Each of the 3,000 medals awarded to athletes will bear bands of jade, which symbolizes honor and virtue.

Gold medals will incorporate white jade, silvers bear light green jade, and dark green jade will highlight bronze.

Meanwhile, in other Olympic/precious jewelry news (who knew?), gymnast Shawn Johnson has her own new line of fine jewels. Brodkey's (an 11-store chain in Iowa and Nebraska), developed the line bearing the name of the 16-year-old Iowa native after a necklace they gave her as a gift (featuring her name in diamonds across emerald-, sapphire-, ruby-, and onyx-encrusted Olympic rings) garnered widespread attention. Pieces from the Shawn Johnson Jewelry Collection start at $99, and a portion of the sale price will go to the U.S. Olympic Committee, which helps athletes train.

Weekly Gem
In what can only be described as strange bedfellows, quintessential jewelry artist Robert Lee Morris—known for collaborations with the likes of Andy Warhol and Donna Karan—has teamed up with the Olsen twins to design a new jewelry line. The collection of 80 pieces is available at Intermix.

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