Olympic Collector Show Goes to Lake Placid

(ATR) Lake Placid, New York has been awarded the 21st World Olympic Collectors Fair in September.

The site of the 1932 and 1980 Winter Olympic Games bid for the fair with support from the U.S. Olympic Committee, which has been increasingly active in vying for events. The USOC will take an even bigger international role in late October when it hosts the ANOC General Assembly in Washington.

The IOC Philatelic, Numismatic and Memorabilia Commission, chaired by C.K. Wu, granted organization of the fair to the U.S.-based Olympin Collectors Club, which put on the 2011 event in Chicago.

The IOC show last year was held in Lausanne, while previous editions have been in Warsaw, Cologne, Rio de Janeiro, Seoul and Beijing.

The show will be held Sept. 10-13 at the Lake Placid Olympic Center in the heart of the village. The center also contains the Lake Placid Olympic Museum.

Chief organizer Jon Becker tells Around the Rings that there is room on the floor of the 1932 Arena for 125 booths or tables. Dozens more can be placed in adjacent convention space.

Becker said that Lake Placid has hosted numerous national and club shows in the past and he wanted to "expose Lake Placid and its Olympic heritage to the rest of the world."

Activities in addition to the show include a dinner for attendees, a guided tour of venues from 1932 and 1980 and receptions at the U.S. Luge Association headquarters and the Lake Placid Olympic Museum.

Becker, who is on the executive board of Olympin and the Lake Placid Olympic Museum, tells ATR that special room rates have been arranged at Lake Placid hotels. Arrangements are also in the works for shuttle and other transportation services to and from area airports.

"For those not totally familiar with Lake Placid, it is accessible by major airlines to airports in the region," Becker says, noting that there is an Amtrak stop nearby as well as bus service from Montreal, New York and Albany.

Noted Philatelist Passes Away

Robert Farley, chairman of the Society of Olympic Collectors and editor of the quarterly journal Torch Bearer, died on Jan. 16 of a heart attack. He was 59.

The funeral service will be held in the United Kingdom in Worcester, Worcestershire, on Feb. 10, followed by a wake at the Worcester Warriors Sixfields Rugby Club.

"Bob was an outstanding chairman of our society, a great collector and, more than that, he was meticulous, thorough, and a perfectionist," Bob Wilcock said in a letter to colleagues.

"To him, the importance and pleasure was not just in collecting Olympic stamps, postal history and postcards, but in attending the Games, meeting fellow collectors from around the world, collating and recording information and sharing that information through articles and publications. He collaborated closely with key members of our sister societies and with collectors in the host countries, from Calgary 1988 through to Sochi 2014. He was determined to make SOC's coverage of Olympic philately as good as any and better than most, and he succeeded. He became a member of IOC's Collectors Commission and worked tirelessly to make Olympex 2012 the success that it was."

Wilcock said the death of Farley has a "profound" impact on SOC.

"We are suddenly and unexpectedly without a chairman and a writer and editor of Torch Bearer,"

he said a special committee meeting will be held in mid-February.

"While we are looking in particular for one or more people who can assist in the writing and gathering of articles and the regular publication of Torch Bearer, we will welcome new members to the committee to assist in the smooth running of the society," he said. "Every contribution will be valuable and appreciated."

Wilcock can be reached at bob@towlard.freeserve.co.uk or marathon@societyofolympiccollectors.org.

Farley is survived by his wife Brenda and daughter Sarah.

Rare Badges Sold in German Auction

A rare badge for snow clearing or "Schnee-Raumung" at the 1964 Innsbruck Olympics fetches 2,530 euro or $2,960 (including commission) in the latest mail bid auction by Heinrich Winter of Dusseldorf.

The price was more than seven times its estimate of 350 euro. The 1964 Innsbruck Games are known for a shortage of snow on the mountains, prompting the use of the Austrian army to bring snow to the skiing courses. However, a green army badge, or "Bundesheer," failed to sell at 225 euro.

IOC Session badges continue to be popular among collectors. A seldom-seen badge from Sapporo in 1972, the 72nd Session, had two holes in its green and white striped ribbon and carried an estimate of 150 euro. It sold for 4,830 euro (about $5,650).

A Sapporo bronze medal in pairs figure skating realized the highest price in the auction at 9,890 euro (about $11,570). A 1948 St. Moritz gold medal with an estimate of 20,000 euro (about $23,400) did not sell.

Sochi Participation Medal Fakes

Collectors who balked at the price tag of $400 or more for 2014 Sochi participation medals have seen plenty of less expensive medals on eBay -- some as low as $79.99. However, they must beware of fakes.

Some of the fake medals from U.S. and Greek sellers are 55 mm in diameter and weigh 100 grams. The real medals are 50 mm in diameter and weigh about 82 grams. While the fake medals look similar to the untrained eye in some pictures, they do not have a makers mark on the reverse at about 5 o’clock, which can be seen on authentic medals. Unfortunately, some sellers are using photos of genuine medals or do not show the reverse.

Real and fake boxes are also different. Fake medals come in boxes that are two pieces. The real boxes are only one piece, with the lid attached by a magnet. In addition, the motif on the real boxes is a lighter blue color.

Collectors also report suspected fake Sochi medals coming out of Hong Kong, where the seller says the diameter is 49 mm and the weight is 78 grams. A collector who received a medal from Hong Kong said the finish was flaking off the edges.

Written by Karen Rosen

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