Historical Hockey Memorabilia Auction November 2015
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 11/3/2015
This very distinctive 1988 Olympic bronze medal was awarded for men’s flyweight taekwondo. The Korean martial art made its Olympic debut in Seoul as a demonstration sport, which explains why this bronze medal differs from the ones presented to victors competing in official sports at the Games in South Korea. “Taekwondo Men Fly” is stamped on the bottom edge of the medal, which on its face has “XXIV Olympiad Seoul 1988” and a raised image of Seoul 1988 mascot Hodori as a taekwondo competitor. That differs from the medals awarded to victors in the official sports in 1988, but the other side of the medal is the same, with a dove carrying a laurel sprig and the Seoul Olympic logo. Comes with its original ribbon and Seoul 1988 purple velvet presentation box.
The face of this Seoul 1988 Olympic taekwondo medal differs from that year’s official competition medals, which displayed the traditional image of victory goddess Nike holding a winner’s crown and palm used on Olympic medals from 1928 to 2000.
Jordan’s Ihsan Abushekha and Mustapha Moutarazak each finished in third place in Seoul after losing their respective semifinal matches in the men’s 110- to 119-lb class. Taekwondo became an official Olympic sport in 2000 in Sydney.
The medal measures a shade over 2 1/4" inches in diameter and sits in the blue velvet bed of its presentation box, with “Games of the XXIVth Olympiad Seoul 1988” in gold-colored lettering beneath the Seoul 1988 Olympic logo inside the lid. The medal has its original blue, red, gold and white ribbon, which is wonderfully preserved. The purple velvet exterior of the 7” x 4 1/4" presentation box remains in very nice condition with some wear from handling apparent on the edges.
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