Nobel Committee says honour stays with winner even if medal is given away

OSLO, Jan 17 — The Nobel Committee clarified Friday that while laureates can give away their physical medals, the honour of the prize remains inseparably linked to the original recipient.

The Norwegian Nobel Committee issued the statement a day after 2023 peace prize winner Maria Corina Machado presented her medal to former US President Donald Trump.

"The original laureate is recorded in history as the recipient of the prize," the award body said in its statement.

It confirmed there are no restrictions on what a laureate may do with the medal, diploma, or prize money.

A laureate is free to keep, give away, sell, or donate these items, according to the committee's statutes.

"The prize itself – the honour and recognition – remains inseparably linked to the person or organisation designated as the laureate," the five-member committee stated.

The medal and diploma are merely physical symbols confirming the award.

Machado's award also included a diploma and 11 million Swedish crowns (USD 1.19 million).

This is not the first instance of a Nobel laureate parting with their medal.

In 1943, literature laureate Knut Hamsun gave his medal to Nazi propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels.

In 2022, peace laureate Dmitry Muratov sold his medal for USD 100 million to aid Ukrainian refugee children.

In 2024, the widow of former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan donated his 2001 peace prize medal and diploma to the UN office in Geneva.