Rare bronze winner’s medal awarded to Cuban wrestler Reineris Salas for the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics. Bronze, 86 mm, 455 gm, by Junichi Kawanishi. The front of the medal features text across the top, “Games of the XXXII Olympiad Tokyo 2020,” above the Olympic rings and a winged Nike flying over Panathinaikon Stadium with the Acropolis in the background; the reverse features the emblem of the Tokyo Games set against a ‘polished stone’ background with surrounding curved lines that represent different patterns of light and the energy of the athletes and their supporters. The bottom edge of the medal is engraved with the event: "Wrestling, Men's Freestyle 97kg." Retains its original multicolored ribbon, which bears traditional Japanese design motifs found in ichimatsu moyo (harmonized chequered patterns) and kasane no irome (traditional kimono layering techniques) in a modern format. The medal bears trivial surface scuffs and marks. Winner's medals from recent Olympiads are difficult to obtain and ever-popular among collectors—this example is just the third Tokyo winner's medal, of any type, that we have offered at auction.
