Artefacts

Melbourne 1956, winner's medal, silver, awarded to Maigonis VALDMANIS (URSS) for basketball.

Physical description

Obverse: representation of a woman, allegory of Glory, holding a laurel wreath in her right hand and a palm branch in her left hand. She sits on steps that have bas-reliefs depicting a chariot with horses. To his right is an amphora. In the background there is a two-storey building with arcades. Caption: "XVITH / OLYMPIAD / MELBOURNE / 1956". Name of the manufacturer at the foot of the allegory: "K.G. LUKE LTD". Reverse: victorious athlete, carried in triumph by a procession of athletes, who salutes the public and holds a palm branch with his left hand. Presence of a building in the background. Bottom right, near the edge, initials "GC" of the artist Giuseppe Cassioli.

Created

Created: Giuseppe CASSIOLI Created: K. G. Luke. LTD

Used

Used: Maigonis VALDMANIS

Materials

silver

Colors

silver

Dimension

ø 5.1 x 0.5 cm, 69 g

Literature

LENNARTZ, Karl. Olympische Siege: Medaillen, Diplome, Ehrungen. Berlin : Sportverlag, cop. 2000. 474 p. ISBN 3-328-00865-9. GREENSFELDER, Jim. VORONTSOV, Oleg. LALLY, Jim.. Olympic Medals, A Reference Guide. Saratoga : GVL Enterprises, 1998. GADOURY, Victor, Médailles et Monnaies Olympiques, Monaco : Editions Victor Gadoury, 1996. 555 p. ISBN 2-906602-10-8. The Official Report of the Organizing Committee for the Games of the XVI Olympiad Melbourne 1956. Melbourne : Organizing Committee for the Games of the XVI Olympiad, cop., 1958. Conner, Floyd. Les jeux olympiques : 600 victoires incroyables, records insolites, hasards étranges, destins inimaginables, coups tordus, sports improbables, loosers magnifiques et autres bizarreries.... Le Rheu : La Maison d'Edition, 2010. 217. ISBN 978–236–026–0027.

Type of item

Medals -> winner's medal

Reference number

236346

Keywords

Athlete silver medallist Melbourne 1956, Olympic Games USSR (1922-1989)Antiquity Male Basketball/basketball[M]Laurel victory

Notes

Melbourne 1956 – silver medal won by Maigonis VALDMANIS (URS) in basketball. Following the Second World War, basketball, which was probably introduced into Latvia by the Americans of the Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) in 1920, began to gain even more exposure as it spread throughout the USSR. In 1952, Maigonis Valdmanis competed for the Soviet national team, helping the country win its first medal in the sport (silver) at the Helsinki Games. She would go on to win two more – in Melbourne in 1956 and in Rome in 1960. Obtained through an exchange with a collector