The Radix pin, awarded to U.S. figure skating medalists at the U.S. Championships, World Championships and the Olympic Games, weighs about an ounce and is not much bigger than a paper clip. But that tiny piece of metal contains multitudes.

It’s a token representing years of hard work, a tangible reward for athletic excellence and one of the most coveted mementos in the sport of figure skating — crafted, with loving care, by a Colorado Springs jeweler.

Revolution Jewelry Works at 5928 Stetson Hills Blvd. has partnered with U.S. Figure Skating to be the exclusive manufacturer of the Radix pins, continuing a tradition started by Harry Radix in the 1940s.

Radix, a former president of the Chicago Figure Skating Club and longtime lover of the sport, began the tradition to reward U.S. figure skating medalists with a keepsake that would remind them, for the rest of their lives, of their glorious moment on the podium.

“At that time, the reward for kids for working and training so hard, if they won, was typically flowers,” said Jennifer Farnes, owner of Revolution Jewelry Works. “But flowers die, and when they do, these athletes don’t have anything to show for all their hard work. So Harry Radix began working with a jewelry store to create the pins.”

Before his death, Radix established a trust fund in his will that was intended to fund the pins in perpetuity.

“But metal costs went up, and labor costs went up, and the trust ran out of funds about 10 years ago,” Farnes said.

A fan of the sport herself, Farnes arranged a meeting with U.S. Figure Skating officials to see what her store could do to keep the tradition alive.

“I thought, ‘Instead of worrying about where the funding is coming from, why don’t we just make the skates, and that will be our sponsorship of U.S. Figure Skating?’” she said. “That’s how the partnership started.”

The costs of an average round of pins — 68 in a standard competitive year, 88 in an Olympic year — run between $8,000 and $12,000, according to Farnes.

The jeweler has made a few design changes to the Radix pins to make them resemble a modern-day figure skate. The new pins are also colored to represent the placement of the winning competitors, Farnes said.

“The first-place pins are plated in yellow gold,” she said. “White gold for second place, rose gold for third. Fourth place is traditionally pewter, so we did those in a gunmetal gray rhodium plate.”

Renee Grossman, director of business development for U.S. Figure Skating, said the Radix pins are highly prized by the athletes.

“They are a really key part of how we honor our medalists,” Grossman said. “They are beautifully crafted, and the athletes love having them.”

In addition to being part of a decades-long tradition, Farnes said she relishes the Colorado Springs connection that the pins represent. U.S. Figure Skating is based in Colorado Springs, and many skaters train at the Olympic and Paralympic Training Center of the World Arena Ice Hall.

This year, the Colorado Springs-based pairs team of Ellie Kam and Danny O’Shea have a chance to win a medal at the Olympic Games in Milan and Cortina, Italy. If they do, they will each be awarded a Radix pin made in their hometown.

“It’s really an honor to be a part of such a longstanding legacy,” Farnes said. “Michelle Kwan, Nancy Kerrigan, Brian Boitano and so many of the legends of the sport have these pins. It’s a special part of U.S. figure skating history. And the connection with Colorado Springs is pretty cool.”