OSLO, Norway — The Norwegian Nobel Committee issued a statement Friday regarding the act of "giving away" a Nobel Prize.
While the committee did not explicitly mention the reason for the statement, many speculate it is in response to Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado presenting her award to President Donald Trump.
In a statement published to the Nobel Peace Prize website, the committee outlined that a recipient of the prize, referred to as a laureate, is presented two symbols; a gold medal and a diploma. The prize money is then awarded separately.
"A laureate cannot share the prize with others, nor transfer it once it has been announced," the statement reads. "A Nobel Peace Prize can also never be revoked. The decision is final and applies for all time."
The statement goes on to say that a laureate is free to keep or give away their prize and the money at their own discretion, and provided examples of laureates who either gave away, or sold their Nobel medals.
Here are just some of the examples provided by the committee:
Kofi Annan (Peace Prize 2001): In 2024, his widow, Nane Annan, donated the medal and diploma to the United Nations Office in Geneva, Switzerland, where it remains on display.
Dmitry Muratov (Peace Prize 2021): Muratov, who was awarded the Peace Price for his reporting on Russia's corruption, electoral fraud, and human rights violations, sold his medal in 2014 for $103.5 million in 2022. The money was donated to UNICEF's fund for Ukrainian refugee children.
Leon Lederman (Physics Prize 1988): Lederman, who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics alongside Melvin Schwartz and Jack Steinberger for research into neutrinos and leptons, sold his medal in 2015 for over $765,000 to cover medical expenses related to dementia. He died three years later at the age of 96 at a care facility in Rexburg, Idaho.
The committee stressed that even if the medal and prize money are given away, it "does not alter who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize."
