Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION
Klassen's no two-bit athlete...
...but she is featured on 25-cent Olympic coin
IF you feel like expressing your gratitude the next time you walk by a guitar-playing busker or have your windshield cleaned on the street corner, you can throw 'em a couple of Cindy Klassens.
The Royal Canadian Mint released 22 million 25-cent coins featuring the image of Canada's most decorated Olympian -- and native Winnipegger -- in a speedskating pose on Tuesday. It's the 15th Olympic-themed coin the mint has produced since the Beijing Games in 2008.
"We were excited with the Winnipeg connection. It's a nice fit and we wish her luck in the upcoming Games," said Christine Aquino, the mint's director of communications.
The country's money-maker decided to immortalize Klassen, a winner of five medals at the 2006 Games in Turin, Italy -- including gold in the 1,500 metres -- after she placed third in a mint-sponsored contest to determine Canada's greatest Winter Olympic moments of all time. (The quarters celebrating the top two, the gold medal-winning men's and women's hockey teams of 2002, were put into circulation last fall.)
All of the two-bit coins were produced at the mint's Winnipeg facility but they weren't all created equally. Three million of the 25-cent pieces feature a bright red Maple Leaf behind Klassen and have been inserted randomly into circulation coin rolls.
"There are quite a few Olympic coins in change. Part of the excitement is looking at your change on a daily basis," she said.
Those not willing to take the chance or want the Klassen quarters in pristine condition can pick them up at Royal Bank branches and select Petro-Canada locations. Employing the same technology used in producing a red poppy on the Remembrance Day quarter, the coloured Klassen quarters are sure to prove popular among coin collectors, sports fans and Olympic aficionados, Aquino said.
Klassen was not available for comment Tuesday.
There are still two Olympic-themed coins to come, Aquino said. The 2010 Lucky Loonie will be released Feb. 12, the first day of competition in Vancouver while the 25-cent piece celebrating sledge hockey will be unveiled March 18 during the Paralympic Games, which are also being held in Vancouver.
geoff.kirbyson@freepress.mb.ca
A rare event
CINDY Klassen is the only individual athlete to be commemorated in the Royal Canadian Mint's Olympic coin series.
She's on the flip side of Queen Elizabeth on the new 25-cent piece released into circulation Tuesday. Two teams, the 2002 men's and women's ice hockey teams, have been similarly immortalized.
Other coin-related facts about the Olympics:
Eleven different 25-cent coins have been released over the past three years to represent the following sports: curling, hockey, wheelchair curling, alpine skiing, biathlon, snowboarding, freestyle skiing, figure skating, cross-country skiing, bobsleigh and speedskating. A 12th, sledge hockey, will be released in March.
10 million coins of two Lucky Loonies were also produced -- one for the Beijing Olympics in 2008 and another for the Vancouver Games (to be released Feb. 12).
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition January 6, 2010 A3
-
WFP Hockey
Download our new hockey app for the iPhone for Winnipeg Jets updates
-
Editor's Bulletin
Sign up for daily bulletins from editor Margo Goodhand
-
Winnipeg Jets
All things NHL on our Jets landing page
-
Twitter
Follow our reporters and our news feeds on Twitter
-
News Cafe
Check out the menu, read our blog posts or get info on coming events
-
Facebook Fanpage
Follow our Facebook Fanpage for story links, contests and special events
Ads by Google
- Back to Top
- Return to Local
Poll
Most Popular
- Piers Morgan blasts 'gruesome' Madonna
- RCMP receptionist told Stobbe wife was dead
- Search is on for man seen leaving the scene where two Alberta Mounties were shot
- Province rules out reports of cougar in Transcona
- Slain woman appears before jury on video
- City family donates $1 million for endowed research chair in cardiology
- Should the federal government be spending $7.5 million on the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee?
- Census 2011 : Immigrant influx boosts Manitoban population
- LeAnn Rimes in pain following 'minor surgery'
- US teen gets life in prison for killing 9-year-old; called the murder "pretty enjoyable"
- Piers Morgan blasts 'gruesome' Madonna
- Clothing chain pulls Caterpillar boots to protest closure of London, Ont., plant
- Three winning tickets sold for Friday's $50 million Lotto Max jackpot
- Woman sexually assaulted during noon-hour in Exchange District
- Woman's car stolen at gunpoint at St. Vital mall, police say
- Eleven people killed after truck hits van in southwestern Ontario
- 'This is so silly': Mom and Dad tell story of baby Zade, born on side of Highway 59
- Stobbe said slaying during shopping trip 'strange': sister-in-law
- Tactical squad storms St. Vital house
- Restaurant Dubrovnik may be closed for good
- Do you smoke marijuana?
- Driver dead after SUV goes over Disraeli Bridge
- George Clooney's prank could end Pitt's career
- Piers Morgan blasts 'gruesome' Madonna
- Tina Maze strips down to her sports bra to send out underwear message: 'Not your business'
- Clothing chain pulls Caterpillar boots to protest closure of London, Ont., plant
- Minor earthquake strikes near Manitoba
- Car's plunge off Disraeli fatal
- Two children, two women die in fire
- Kate Beckinsale's weight fears over Underworld catsuit
- Harper driven by libertarian ideology, not reality
- Province rules out reports of cougar in Transcona
- Census 2011 : Immigrant influx boosts Manitoban population
- OMG! Candy kings back at it
- Original Joe's, Elephant & Castle expanding
- Easy, economical, healthy soup
- Task force to review 2011 flood
- Winnipeg software company ranked top employer
- Lesson about war, power told with Shaw's comic touch
- Stobbe said slaying during shopping trip 'strange': sister-in-law
- Swedish bunny's sheep herding skills becomes click-monster on YouTube
- League encourages hazing secrecy
- Northern fishing lodge destroyed by fire
- Police target drivers talking on cellphones, texting
- Harper driven by libertarian ideology, not reality
- Obama torn by conflicting allies
- 'This is so silly': Mom and Dad tell story of baby Zade, born on side of Highway 59
- Minor earthquake strikes near Manitoba
- Time, it appears, is on Assad's side
- Woman's car stolen at gunpoint at St. Vital mall, police say
- Minor earthquake strikes near Manitoba
- Paddler Starkell was modern-day voyageur
- Driver dead after SUV goes over Disraeli Bridge
- Car's plunge off Disraeli fatal
- Local shooting spoofed on SNL
- Canadian woman 'badly injured' in Mexico, local media report apparent beating
- Winnipeg mother watches as car stolen with child inside
- Swedish bunny's sheep herding skills becomes click-monster on YouTube
- League encourages hazing secrecy
- The cost of calories: It's expensive to eat healthily
You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is register and/or login and you can join the conversation and give your feedback.
The Winnipeg Free Press does not necessarily endorse any of the views posted. By submitting your comment, you agree to our Terms and Conditions. These terms were revised effective April 16, 2010; View the changes. New to commenting? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions.