The medal hangs from a 3 cm wide silk moiré tricolour ribbon of equal width blue, white and red vertical stripes. The 3 cm wide and 22mm high ribbon suspension loop is cast as an integral part of the medal in the form of oak leaves. The leaves of the suspension loop change colour depending on the grade of the award, bronze for the bronze grade, silver for the silver grade second class, silver-gilt for the silver grade first class and silver-gilt grade, and gold for the gold grade. Different devices may be worn on the service ribbon to denote the grade of the award when only the ribbons are worn. A plain ribbon is worn for the bronze grade, the silver grade second class is denoted by the addition of a silver five pointed star, a silver and a silver-gilt star for the silver grade first class, a silver-gilt star for the silver-gilt grade and a rosette for the gold grade. Noteworthy recipients (partial list) Gendarmerie general Denis Favier Paris firefighter Joseph Maigrot Rescue helicopter pilot Jean Boulet General Jean Bouffet Rescue helicopter pilot René Romet Navy commander, doctor Éric Dumont Police commissioner Robert Blémant Paris firefighter lieutenant-colonel Frédéric Curie Gendarmerie colonel Olivier Kim Firefighter colonel Antoine Battesti Military rabbi Paul Haguenauer Navy commander Philippe Kieffer Police detective Roger Borniche Writer and historian Olivier-Raoul-Hugues Chebrou de Lespinats Police commissioner Christophe Gavat Oscar II, King of Sweden Mamoudou Gassama, who climbed the outside of an apartment building to rescue a toddler hanging from a balcony Kenneth John Bellamy and Richard Jebbett of Lincolnshire, UK, who jumped into the River Seine in Paris and rescued a drowning woman. Recipient units (partial list) 17th Parachute Engineer Regiment Paris Fire Brigade See also Ribbons of the French military and civil awards References External links http://www.france-phaleristique.com/accueil.htm https://web.archive.org/web/20110710193646/http://www.entente-combattants-herault.com/decorations.html Civil awards and decorations of France Military awards and decorations of France Courage awards Awards established in 1820 Awards established in 1901