Medals Related to Athletics

The medal's obverse bears figure of nude, lighlty covered young man facing left, standing with one foot on rock, one arm holding cloth behind his back, bent over book held in other hand; small Pegasus in exergue. At left, MENS / FER- / VIDA IN / CORPORE / LACERT- / OSO · ; signed and dated at right, (RTM monogram) / 1916

The reverse bears wreath decorated with coats of arms of participating universities. In center field on banner, To / SHELDON J MANN / FOR SCHOLARSHIP / AND ATHLETIC / PROWESS; (ICAA logo of interlocking letters)

The Intercollegiate Athletic Association grew out of the National Football Conference, acknowledging that there was a need to counter the rising commercialization and brutality of intercollegiate sports.  In 1905 alone there were 18 deaths and over 100 major injuries in collegiate football matches.  In 1905 a vote of the National Conference authorized the formation of a new national group and on March 31st, 1906, a constitution and by-laws were approved with sixty-two colleges as founding members. Its mission was to formulate rules that would apply to intercollegiate athletic competition in all sports.  In 1910 the ICAA was renamed the NCAA.

The medal was awarded to Sheldon Jenks Mann (1896-1968), a student of dentistry at Ohio State University. He was also a member of the dental honor fraternity Omicron Kappa Upsilon.

The Latin phrase translates roughly to "a passionate mind in a well-trained body" and is a variation of the more common "mens sana in corpore sano" or "a healthy mind in a healthy body," which was regarded as a mere recommendation for hygiene and did not seem to capture the fighting spirit of athletic competition enough. 

The circular medal measures 76.4mm in diameter and was struck in bronze by the Medallic Art Company of New York.  No mintage is reported but it was only awarded for nine years, so there should not be too many.

References:   MACo 1916-008

The medal's obverse bears handle of sword, crossbar horizontal and blade pointing down. Across, THE / FENCERS / CLVB OF / PHILA / D-ELPHIA; signed at bottom, 19 (RTM monogram) 14

The reverse is inscribed to FLORA S. FENDER / 1934 / LEFT AND RIGHT; stamped MEDALLIC / ART CO. / NEW YORK

The looped medal measures 29.1mm in diameter (32.1mm with loop) and was struck in bronze by the Medallic Art Company of New York. No mintage is reported.

References:   MACo 1921-027

The medal's obverse bears spread eagle on American shield over crossed raquets and balls, oak and laurel branches flanking to left and right. Around, UNITED STATES LAWN TENNIS ASSOCIATION / · ANNIVERSARY MEDAL · ; above eagle, GOLDEN / JUBILEE; under shield, 1881 - 1931

The reverse bears WINNER / CHAMPIONSHIP / 1931 within thin wreath. Incribed dedication, PRESENTED TO / MISS JESSIE KERSHAW / BY THE MEMBER CLUBS OF THE / PACIFIC NORTHWEST LAWN TENNIS / ASSOCIATION IN GRATEFUL RECOGNITION / OF HER LONG AND UNSELFISH / DEVOTION AND SERVICES TO THE / GAME AND ITS PLAYERS / AUGUST - 3 / 1931

The obverse bears an elegant beauty, one hand toying with string of pearls; above, APHRODITE; in lower right, MCM (circled JF monogram) XXXII.

The reverse bears a relay runner passing the torch to another. In upper left, SWIFT RUN- / NERS; in exergue, JF © Sc.

Flanagan's career had peaked at this point and he reused older works for his medal. The obverse is based on a 1904 marble medallion which graced August Belmont's Knickerbocker Hotel in Manhattan. The reverse was originally created for a clock that was installed in the Main Reading Room of the Library of Congress in 1902.

This medal was chosen as the 6th issue of the prestigious Society of Medalists series. It measures 73mm in diameter and was struck by the Medallic Art Company of New York. The reported mintage is 1,494 pieces in bronze and 125 in silver. The bronzes exist in many patina variants and even the silvers exist in two variants: one from the original silver run in the 1970's and one from a telemarketing promotion in 1993.

References:   Baxter 163, MACo 1930-001-006, Marqusee 155, SoM 6

The medal's obverse bears a line of five runners, flying geese overhead, slim whippet racing below.

The reverse bears a nude athlete putting the shot. Flanking the athlete, 19 (RTM monogram) 36 - REJOICE / OH / YOUNG - MAN IN / THY - YOUTH; in exergue, ©

Robert Tait McKenzie is rightly famous for his athletic subjects and this medal is a good example. As he wrote in the brochure accompanying the medal:

"The last fifty years has shown a revival and spread of interest in competitive athletic sports and outdoor life that has no parallel in the history of the world...
As one who has followed this great movement from its inceptionto maturity I have chosen two phases of it for the thirteenth medal issued by the Society."

This medal was chosen as the 13th issue of the prestigious Society of Medalists series in 1936. It measures 73mm in diameter and was struck by the Medallic Art Company of New York. The reported production quantity of this medal is 1,001 in bronze and 100 in silver.

References:   109, MACo 1930-001-013, Marqusee 269, SoM 13

The uniface medal bears a basketbll player poised to pass ball, r. Across, NATIONAL - COLLEGIATE / BASKET- BALL / CHAM- PION- SHIP; signed (RAW monogram) / ©

Dick Johnson lists three different set numbers for this medal but as they are without images, I can't be sure which one this medal represents.  The set numbers are 001 through 003.

The circular medal measures 44.3mm in diameter and was struck in bronze by the Medallic Art Company of New York.

References:   MACo 1950-056

The medal bears laurel-crowned male figure grabbing a suspended ring with pommel horse and high bar in background. At bottom, PASADENA / NATIONAL INV. / GYMNASTICS; down right side, 1 9 5 1; signed at lower right, (DW monogram)

The reverse is stamped: 2ND PLACE / ROPE / CLIMB; engraved to: MIRROR BRIGHT POLISH / DONOR

The National Invitational Gymnastics Competition was a collegiate competition for male students. They competed in the modern male gymnastics disciplines as well as in rope climbing.

The circular medal measures 57.4mm in diameter. I do not have any information about the artst represented by hs/her initials DW or the mint that struck this medal.  Any information would be welcome.

The medal's obverse bears two male golf players shaking hands over a hole, globe centered on North America in background. In exergue, CANADA CUP; signed above exergue at feet of right player, R·A·W

The medal's reverse bears wreath with streamers. Around, INTERNATIONAL GOLF TROPHY / TEAM MEMBER / PRESENTED BY / JOHN JAY HOPKINS

John Jay Hopkins (1893-1957) was the founder and first president of General Dynamics.  He created the golf World Cup, which began as the Canada Cup in 1953.  He also donated the trophy for the event.

References:   MACo 1953-031

This uniface medallion bears three bicyclists, facing half right, racing for the finish line, two looking forward, middle one with his head down. Signed along seat of left-most bicyclist, EVERHART II

I like how Don Everhart made the front wheel of the leading bicyclist leave the traditional medallion's circle.  It makes the whole design much more dynamic.

Many thianks to the artist for granting me permission to use his imagery.