Rare 1956 France NOC Olympic

-by John Syratt During its 106 day journey through close to 1,000 communities, 12,000 people will have carried the Olympic Torch as it travels towards the site of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games. Unlike previous Olympic flame relays, a torch is carried by a runner for each leg of the relay and just the flame is passed along, not the torch. The bearers could pre-purchase their own torches for $350 and about 60 per cent did so. Olympic memorabilia collectors have been waiting in the wings for these events, so it’s no surprise just days after the run began, to see some of these torches up for sale on sites like eBay and Craigslist. The average prices being fetched for the sleek white torches range from $1300 to $2500. In November, CTV News reported that Vancouver Olympic Committee president John Furlong said he couldn't imagine anyone wanting to part with their Olympic torch for profit.

“Olympic memorabilia heats up in the three months leading up to a summer or winter games and reaches a fever pitch as soon as athletes start racking up gold medals,” Stacey Bradford wrote in the Wall Street Journal. "Not a chance, not ever" would he do something like that, Mr. Furlong said. "That's not a profit I would ever want." But, as will all sports collectibles, the memorabilia market is thriving and Olympic items have been collected for close to 100 years. Since the athletes and their achievements are soon forgotten in the years between Olympic Games, most mementos don't appreciate in value that much. Some exceptions include items considered particularly rare or ones that tell a good story. No one in Alberta can forget the frenzied buying, selling and trading of collectible pins during Calgary’s 1988 Winter Olympic Games Olympic torches, pins, tickets, posters, medals, coins, stamps, sports cards, programs, apparel, and even phone cards are all eagerly sought after and collected by Olympic fans. In December 2009, the Olympic torch from the 1948 Summer Games in London, UK fetched over $10,000 on eBay.

Here are prices of some recently sold Olympic collectibles: PINS: A 1948 London Olympic Games pin: $86.12. Rare 1956 France NOC Olympic Pin Cortina d’Ampezzo: $521.59 TICKETS: 1980 US Olympic Hockey Team gold medal game victory tickets: $323.39. Two Vancouver 2010 Olympic hockey tickets to the men’s gold medal game: $4500. APPAREL: A Roots Team Canada gold medal leather/wool hockey jacket: $276.44. MEDALS: A participant medal from the 1900 Paris Olympics: $813.70. A 1984 Los Angeles Olympics winning athlete’s silver medal: $3,129.60. COINS: A 1976 Montreal, Canada Olympic $100 Gold Coin: $573.76. A 2008 Beijing China Olympic kilo silver proof coin: $1126.66 SPORTS CARDS: A 2008 Donruss National Treasures card featuring gold medal sprinter Jesse Owens’ cut autograph with an inscription from the 1936 Germany Olympics: $2008.16. PROGRAMS: A 1960 Olympics Squaw Valley Official Daily Program: $25.17. A 1948 London Olympic Games Opening Ceremony Program: $20.85. POSTERS: A 1972 Munich original poster #8 of 14 different ones: $10.42 to $54.25. A 1936 Winter Olympics 40.25” by 25” poster: $1053.62. STAMPS: 1964 Russia Olympic Stamp, unused: $206.08. A 1928 Netherlands Olympic Games special postmark, stamp/card: $75.11.

Olympic torch carried to 1948 Olympic Summer Games in London, UK. – photo courtesy Artonel Cortina d’Ampezzo pin sold for $500