A 1960 Rome Summer Olympics participation medal would not normally generate a whole lot of buzz in the market. After all, these medals were not made of the highest quality material and a total of 5,396 athletes who participated in these Games received one. There were, on the other hand, a few athletes representing the U.S. in Rome whose issued participation medals would certainly be heavily sought after by collectors. One is Muhammad Ali who, as Cassius Clay, won a boxing gold medal in the Light Heavyweight division at the tender age of 18. The other African-American hero for Team USA was 21-year-old Oscar Robertson, who along with Jerry West, Jerry Lucas and company, guided the U.S. Men's basketball team on a dominant gold medal run on the hardcourt. Presented here is Oscar's very own issue participation medal from the 1960 Olympics.
Designed by Emilio Greco and minted by Bertoni of Milan, the cast bronze medal measures 55 mm in diameter and 4 mm thick, weighing 82 grams. The obverse shows a nude female torchbearer in the foreground with the Olympic rings in the background. The reverse shows a flight of eagles soaring over Rome stadium, with "GIOCHI DELLA XVII OLYMPIADE ROMA MCMLX" inscribed around the rim. The original patina on Oscar's medal shows good dimension and just a little tarnishing. It comes in NM condition overall with light wear from age.
PLEASE NOTE: Oscar will donate a portion of his auction proceeds to the Jerome Lipper Multiple Myeloma Center and LeBow Institute for Myeloma Therapeutics at Dana Farber. This renowned cancer treatment center “provides comprehensive care to patients with multiple myeloma, including promising new therapies through clinical trials rooted in an approach that brings laboratory discoveries quickly to the clinical setting (https://www.dana-farber.org/multiple-myeloma-program).