The National Numismatic Registry (NNR), in partnership with the St. Petersburg Mint, has issued a memorable coin in honor of the legendary USSR national team win over the US national team in the final of the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich.
This game, rightly considered one of the most dramatic and memorable in the history of World basketball, has gone down in sporting history. On behalf of the NNR, this coin was presented to Ivan Edeshko, participant of the legendary game and Honored Master of Sports of the USSR.
The memorable coin was presented to the famous player before the CSKA vs. MBA-MAI game by VTB League General Director Ilona Korstin, CSKA General Director Andrey Vatutin, President of the Moscow Basketball Federation Aleksandr Novozhilov, and founder of the National Numismatic Registry Vladimir Chersky.
Ivan Edeshko, Olympic champion:
– I am pleased to receive this coin. I am glad that our win is remembered.
This win by the USSR national team graced basketball. It showed that no one is invincible. For the Americans, our success was a tragedy, as they themselves said. Another important point is that we had a team. It was made up of players from 6 republics. Each of them was the best, the kings in their own country. The art of coaching lies in turning such players into a real Team.
For me, that game is a reminder that you should never give up. You can always turn things around the way you want. That’s exactly what happened in that game.
