Winner's medal issued for gymnastics at the Mexico City 1968 Summer Olympics. Gilt silver, 60 mm, 125 gm, originally designed by Giuseppe Cassioli. The front is inscribed, "XIX Olimpiada Mexico 1968," and features a 'Seated Victory' with the Colosseum in the background; the reverse depicts a victorious athlete with a palm branch being carried by several jubilant athletes. A small plaque attached to the top of the medal bears the gymnastics pictogram of hand gripping a ring, with the reverse engraved, “viga de equilibrios,” or ‘balance beam,’ and the plaque bearing the original burgundy ribbon.
Mexico winner’s medals with their original pictogram plaque are quite uncommon, with this example all the more historic given the popularity of its event—the gymnastics competition stands among the most beloved of all Summer Olympic events. Soviet gymnast Natalia Kuchinskaya, who earned four medals at the '68 Games and was dubbed the 'Sweetheart of Mexico' by an admiring press, finished first in the balance beam event after a controversial scoring revision.
