The weighty discs that will adorn the exultant necks of thousands of athletes in a year’s time were allowed to glitter in public for the first time. The ore for the medals comes from London 2012 sponsor Rio Tinto‘s Utah Copper Mine in Salt Lake City, US, and Oyu Tolgoi project in Mongolia.
See http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2011/jul/27/london-2012-gold-medals-launch.
The article does not mention the controversial nature of both mines and the extent of community opposition to Rio Tinto’s activities in both areas. See short movies at https://londonminingnetwork.org/2011/04/rio-tinto-the-movie/ for background.