Spyros Louis' Olympic Silver Cup Exhibited in Lausanne

The historic Cup, which is a symbol of the Olympic ideal and is inextricably associated with the First Olympic Games, will remain at the Olympic Museum for six months, allowing visitors from all around the world to admire this important artifact and learn about its history.  The Cup won by Spyros Louis and designed by Michel Bréal.  It was awarded to the Marathon Winner at the inaugural Modern Olympic Games in Athens in 1896.

In 2012, the Cup was acquired by the Stavros Niarchos Foundation at an international auction. In doing this, the Foundation wanted to contribute to the repatriation of an extremely significant artifact for the history of Greece, with the sole aim of making it accessible to the Greek people in perpetuity.

Following its highly successful and popular residence in the Acropolis Museum for two consecutive years, the Silver Cup will now move for a limited time to the Olympic Museum in Lausanne, which boasts the largest Olympic Games archive in the world, and is one the most important tourist attractions in Lausanne with thousands of visitors every year.

Following this six-month period, during which the Cup will be on display at the Olympic Museum, it will return to Greece. From 2016 onwards, the historic Cup will be on permanent display at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center, when construction is completed.