Gold Participation Medal of Utmost Rarity From 1912 Highlights Olympic Auction

Corona Del Mar, California, April 21, 2021 – A solid gold participation medal from the 1912

Stockholm Olympic Games is on the auction block with an opening bid of $300,000.

"There is nothing comparable," said auctioneer Ingrid O’Neil, whose 459-lot online auction

closes April 24. auctions.ioneil.com

"If somebody wants a completecollection of participation medals, this medal is the one they need."

Even the International Olympic Committee, which has an impressive collection of Olympic

memorabilia, does not have an example of this medal.

Featuring Zeus on his throne atop a column and holding a statue of Victory with Stockholm

in the background, the 1912 medal is one of only three produced. It will set a record for an

Olympic participation medal if it sells.

The other two in existence are unlikely to ever come on the market: They were presented

to the King of Sweden and the Swedish Crown Prince. This medal was originally given to

Viktor Balck, the president of the 1912 Stockholm Organizing Committee.

Collectors of Olympic participation medals had despaired of ever completing a set with all

1912 variations (bronze, silver, gold, pewter) until a portion of Balck’s estate was auctioned

in 2006 in London. While the medal was overlooked in the catalogue (estimated at only

$4,000 to $6,000), it prompted frenzied bidding before fetching about $184,000, including

buyer’s premium. It was then sold to the current owner.

Fifteen years later, another collector has a chance to acquire it.

O’Neil said the Olympic collectibles market is strong for the scarcest items, "especially

gold winners medals and rare badges."

One of the rarest Olympic badges also has a royal connection and is being offered at

auction for the first time. A badge from the 1964 Tokyo Games designated for the Emperor

or a member of the Japanese Imperial Family already has a bid at $130,000. Featuring the

Rising Sun of the national flag, the badge is framed by the Olympic colors and has a long

white ribbon.

Last October, O’Neil sold a badge for the Imperial Family at the 1972 Sapporo Winter

Olympic Games for $111,625, including the buyer’s premium. The Tokyo badge is even

more valuable with heightened interest in historical items from the 1964 Olympics due to

the upcoming 2020 Games.

The original Michel Delacroix oil painting featured in an official poster for the 1996 Atlanta

Olympic Games has an opening bid of $40,000.

"This is the most expensive item that you can get for an Atlanta Olympic collection," said

auctioneer Ingrid O’Neil,

The painting titled ATLANTA 1896-1996 could fetch a hammer price higher than those

obtained in previous auctions for 1996 Olympic winners’ medals or torches autographed

by Muhammad Ali.

And a rare untrimmed diploma from the first Winter Games in Chamonix, opens at

$15,000. It was awarded to M.J. Grothumsbraaten of Norway for his bronze medal finish in

50-kilometer cross country skiing.

O’Neil has held Olympic auctions since 1990 and this is No. 89. She has organized public

auctions at the Olympic Games in Atlanta in July 1996, at the Olympic Museum in

Lausanne and at Collector Fairs around the world.

The auction includes medals, badges, torches, tickets, programs, diplomas, and souvenirs

spanning the history of the modern Olympic Games from Athens 1896 to Tokyo 2020.

While athletes strive for gold medals, so do collectors. A gold medal from the 1932 Los

Angeles Olympic Games quickly attracted an opening bid of $20,000.

For information, contact Ingrid O’Neil at (949) 715-9808.

25 Years at #1: Your best source of news about the Olympics is www.aroundtherings.com, for subscribers only