Historical Hockey and Sports Memorabilia Auction February 2025
First held in Chamonix, France, in 1924, the Winter Olympic Games originally featured five Winter Olympic Sports (consisting of nine disciplines) including bobsleigh, curling, ice hockey, Nordic skiing (consisting of the disciplines military patrol,[b] cross-country skiing, Nordic combined, and ski jumping), and skating. We offer participation medals from the 1968 (Grenoble), 1972 (Sapporo), 1976 (Innsbruck), 1988 (Calgary) and 2002 (Salt Lake City) Winter Games, with each hailing from the personal collection of noted Finnish hockey executive and writer Kimmo Leinonen. The 1968 medal is 2 7/8" in diameter, with the obverse showing a raised Greek portrait profile head with laurel wreaths as the background and the maker's name stamped at the base, with a skyline view of Grenoble on the reverse along with "X Jeux Olympiques D'Hiver" in raised letters. The 1972 medal is just over 2 1/4" in diameter, with a Games logo on the obverse and rings design on the reverse along with "Sapporo '72". The medal comes with the original plastic display case and blue box. The 1976 medal is just under 2" in diameter, with an Olympic rings design on the obverse along with "XII Olympische Winter Spiele" and "Innsbruck 1976", with a village scene on the reverse. The 1988 medal comes with the original display box, and is 2 1/2" in diameter, with a Games logo and Olympic rings on the obverse as well as "XV Jeux Olympiques D'Hiver Calgary 1988", with the Saddledome on the reverse. The 2002 medal comes with the original box and is square-shaped at just over 1 1/2" x 2 3/4", with an Olympic rings design on the obverse along with lady victory and "XIX Olympic Winter Games, and a mountain scene with "Light the Fire Within" on the reverse. All five medal show just very light wear with no issues. An LOA from Classic Auctions will accompany.
Born in Tampere, Finland, in 1949, and beginning his rise in the hockey ranks as a junior hockey coach while also involved in the hockey stick industry in Canada and Germany, Finnish hockey executive and writer Kimmo Leinonen had a connection to the NHL as he was employed as a scout for the New York Rangers from 1978-79 to 1982-83. As a founding member of the Finnish Hockey Hall of Fame in 1979 - where he served as chairman from 2011 to 2018, Leinonen also helped to establish the IIHF Hall of Fame in 1996 and was the director of public relations and marketing for the organization from 1995 to 2007. His later career included an appointment as general secretary of the 2012 and 2013 Ice Hockey World Championships co-hosted in both Finland and Sweden. The hockey guru has written multiple books on the history of hockey in Finland, and for his great contributions to the sport, was inducted into the builder category of the Finnish Hall of Fame in 2011. He was further acknowledged as the only person from Finland to win the Paul Loicq Award in recognition for his efforts in international ice hockey in 2023. We are pleased to offer items from his personal collection that he acquired during his years as the IIHF director of public relations and marketing from 1995 to 1997, with others originating from later in his career as well as international hockey memorabilia he collected and items he was gifted.
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