Podium-worthy Collectibles Certified by the CCG Companies

With great fanfare, the Winter Olympics have kicked off in Beijing, China. The affiliates of the Certified Collectibles Group® (CCG®) have certified more than 70 million collectibles, including important artifacts directly associated with the Games as well as other valuable keepsakes that reflect the spirit of the global competition held every four years.

Here are some of the incredible collectibles authenticated, graded and preserved by the CCG companies.

Numismatic Guaranty Company™ (NGC®)

A coin with Olympic glory

This Canada 2009 Gold $2,500 celebrates the 2010 Olympics, which were held in Vancouver. This coin issued by the Royal Canadian Mint contains 1 kilogram of gold and is graded NGC PF 69 Ultra Cameo. It sold for an impressive $90,000 at a Heritage Auctions sale in November 2020.

Canada 2009 Olympics - Modern Canada Gold $2,500 graded NGC PF 69 Ultra Cameo. Realized: $90,000 in November 2020 Click images to enlarge.

Other modern commemoratives

The US Mint has issued numerous modern commemoratives celebrating the Olympics, including the Summer Olympics of 1984, 1988, 1992 and 1996, as well as the Winter Olympics of 2002. Those games were held in Salt Lake City, Utah, and NGC has certified more than 1,200 of the Gold $5 coins and more than 1,600 of the Silver Dollars issued for them. Explore modern US commemoratives in NGC Coin Explorer.

US 2002-W Olympics Gold $5 graded NGC MS 70 and a US 2002-P Olympics Silver Dollar graded NGC MS 70. Click images to enlarge.

Paper Money Guaranty® (PMG®)

Notable notes

Commemorative banknotes have become a popular tradition in recent Winter Games, including the 2014 Games in Russia, the 2018 Games in South Korea and the competition this year in China. As the 2022 Winter Games kicked off, PMG had already graded about 21,000 China 2022 Olympic notes, including about 7,000 of the skier shown here and another 14,000 showing a pair of skaters.

China 2022 Beijing 2022 Olympic Games 20 Yuan graded PMG 70★ EPQ. Click images to enlarge.

While several dozen of the skater notes have earned PMG's highest grade of PMG 70★ EPQ, only one of the skier notes has achieved that distinction — the one shown here. Explore these notes (catalog numbers 916 and 917) in the PMG Population Report. Or, to learn more about sports and banknotes, click here.

Certified Sports Guaranty® (CSG®)

Heroic Olympic cards

Sports cards pay tribute to the talent of individual athletes and teams. Few Olympians are more decorated than Apolo Ohno, an American speed skater who competed in the 2002, 2006 and 2010 Games, winning eight medals. A native of Seattle, Ohno is shown holding up eight fingers on this CSG-certified 2020 Topps Autographed Seattle Children's Hospital Card. To see four other sports cards featuring Olympic Medal winners, click here.

2020 Topps Autographed Seattle Children's Hospital #SCH-19 Apolo Ohno graded CSG 9.5 and CSG 10 for the Autograph. Click images to enlarge.

Authenticated Stamp Guaranty® (ASG®)

Venues in the spotlight

In addition to athleticism, the Games often celebrate architectural achievement. This China 2021 stamp shows the National Speed Skating Oval, which was completed in 2020. Learn more about ASG at ASGstamps.com.

China 2021 6 Yuan Beijing Winter Olympics Competition Venues Souvenir Sheet, graded ASG Superb 99 Mint OG Click image to enlarge.

Collectibles Authentication Guaranty® (CAG®)

Space race inspiration

The modern Olympics began in 1896, resurrecting a competition held in ancient Greece for centuries. The ancient tradition of the Olympic flame was resurrected for the 1928 Olympics and the torch relay was introduced in 1936. When NASA needed a mission insignia for the Gemini 7 spaceflight in 1965, they looked to the Olympic torch to symbolize the record length of that 14-day mission.

1965 Flown Gilt/Sterling Gemini 7 Fliteline Medal graded NGC MS 65 and certified by CAG as part of the Armstrong Family Collection. Click images to enlarge.

CAG has certified the provenance of a stunning group of collectibles from the family of astronaut Neil Armstrong. They include various medals from the Gemini and Apollo programs that were taken along in the spacecraft. The Gemini 7 Fliteline Medal shown here features the Olympic torch used on the mission insignia. Explore the Armstrong Family Collection™ at CAGcertified.com/armstrong.

Certified Guaranty Company® (CGC®)

Unsurpassed excellence

The idea of owning the very best often drives the imagination of collectors. This World's Finest Comics #4 from 1941 shows Batman, Robin and Superman on its cover, engaged in the popular Olympic sport of skiing. Who will take home the gold in this race?

World's Finest Comics #4 graded CGC 9.0 and pedigreed to the Mile High Collection. Realized: $4,780 in September 2006 Click image to enlarge.

This particular example, graded CGC 9.0 with a Mile High Collection pedigree, is tied for finest-certified in the CGC Census. It sold for $4,780 in September 2006, and retains the title as highest price realized at Heritage Auctions for this particular issue.

A rink-ready Pokémon card

CGC has a division dedicated to grading trading cards, including Pokémon, Magic the Gathering and other games. Founded in 2020, CGC Trading Cards has already certified more than 1.3 million trading cards, including this high-grade Alolan Ninetales GX from the Pokémon Guardians Rising set. If there were a Winter sport for ice sculpting, this majestic Pokémon would certainly use ice beam to blow away the competition.

Pokémon (2017) Alolan Ninetales GX - Guardians Rising 132/145 graded CGC 9.5, with 9.5 Centering, 9 Surface, 10 Corners and 9.5 Edges. Click images to enlarge.

To learn more about the CCG affiliates, visit CollectiblesGroup.com.

To learn more about additional Olympics-related collectibles certified by the CCG companies, including a first-place medal from the first modern Olympics in 1896, check out this July 2021 article: Incredible Olympic Collectibles Certified by the CCG Companies.

Check out our article detailing the most expensive sports cards ever sold.