The First Olympic Medal of the Russian Empire

In 1765 Catherine II instituted a special contest, held in a special arena with stands for spectators, in which the competitors rode on horseback and fired at mannequins. The contest was accompanied by a festivity with a display of costumes and jewels, and the whole spectacle was known as the Court Carousel.

The men were invited to appear as knights on horseback, and the ladies in carriages with drivers, and the women performed the same exercises.

The exercises were marked by judges, and the winners were presented with costly prizes. The festivity concluded with a solemn supper.

The obverse of the gold token of these games bears the motto «From the Alpheus to the banks of the Neva», an allusion to the Olympic Games of ancient Greece, which were held on the banks of the river Alpheus. This is precisely what points to the status of Catherine's Court Carousel as the heir to Olympic traditions.

The key dates were 16 June 1766, when the first carousel took place, and 11 July 1766, when it was held for the second time.

The winners of the first tournament were Countess N. Chernyshova and Prince I. Shakhovskoy among the mounted cavaliers, and Baron H. Fersen among the cavalier-drivers.

In memory of the first Russian Olympiad, gold tokens and copper medals were struck.