In 2011, the Royal Mint issued 29 coins to represent individual sporting events to commemorate the 2012 London Olympics. A Judo 50p coin to represent the sport of Judo was one of the 29, but how much is it worth today?
The Judo 50 pence coin is now worth about £7.74 on average in 2022 if you are fortunate enough to find one in good condition.
Judo at the Olympics
Judo is a martial arts sport that has been part of the Olympics since 1964. The main goal of the sport is to throw or take down the opponent to the ground and hold them with a pin, joint lock, or a choke. The sport includes three basic techniques:
- nage-waza, throwing techniques
- katame-waza, grappling techniques
- atemi-waza, striking techniques
The athlete performing the technique is called the tori, or taker. The one whom the technique is performed on is called the uke, or receiver.
In the 2012 London Olympics, Judo events were held at the ExCel Exhibition Centre and took place from July 28 through August 3. There were several Judo events including both men and women’s competitions:
- Men’s Extra lightweight
- Men’s Half lightweight
- Men’s Lightweight
- Men’s Half Middleweight
- Men’s Middleweight
- Men’s Half Heavyweight
- Men’s Heavyweight
- Women’s Extra Lightweight
- Women’s Half Lightweight
- Women’s Lightweight
- Women’s Half Middleweight
- Women’s Middleweight
- Women’s Half Heavyweight
- Women’s Heavyweight
At the 2012 Olympics for Judo, Russia took home the most Gold medals followed by France and South Korea.
How Rare Is The Judo 50p?
The Judo 50 pence Olympic 2011 coin is considered to be the third rarest of the 29 when looking at mintage figures alone, just slightly more than the Wrestling and Football 50p coins. There were less than two million of these coins released with 1,161,500 Judo coins minted.
Additionally, the Judo Olympic 50 pence coin was minted in sets including:
- London 2012 Sports Collection Collector Album with an unknown mintage. The set consisted of all 29 Olympic sporting events 50p coins of which the Judo coin was on card 17/29.
- London 2012 Silver 50p Sports Collection with an unknown mintage and consisting of all 29 special Olympic coins.
The Judo 50p was also minted in:
- Specimen Card labeled 17/29
- Silver Brilliant Uncirculated 0.925 Silver with an unknown mintage and a limit of 30,000
- One 0.917 Gold Proof FDC that was presented to the artist
Judo 50p Olympic Coin Design
The reverse side of the Judo 50 pence coin was designed by David Cornell. His design was chosen from more than 30,000 entries from those hoping to be selected to design one of the special 29 coins.
The coin features two judo athletes in full combat and looks as if the athlete on top is about to pin his opponent. Centred at the top is the London 2012 Olympic logo design created by the Wolff Olins consultancy firm. Centred at the bottom and curved upward slightly are the words 50 PENCE to denote the con’s value.
About the Designer of the Coin
Each of the 29 commemorative Olympic 50p coins was designed by individual designers. These designers were the winners of a competition that the Royal Mint had launched in 2009. In an unusual invitation open to the public, the Royal Mint would select who would design each coin’s reverse side image to represent the 29 sports.
The Judo Olympic 50p coin was designed by David Cornell whose design submission was chosen by the Royal Mint.
David Cornell submitted a total of four different designs and was chosen to design the Judo coin. He used to compete in Judo when he was younger. So, the rules of this specific sport were familiar to him.
His memories immediately took him back to the day when he realized he could no longer compete in the sport. The image he chose to represent the sport of Judo was a depiction of the throw that got him thrown in a contest where he injured his shoulder so badly that he could no longer compete in the sport.
He didn’t just dabble in the sport but had become quite good at it until the shoulder injury ended his hopes of being a Judo athlete. When he competed, he had worked his way up to the brown belt. It was when he was attempting to get the black belt that he failed to make a break fall and instead received the injury that ended it for him. But, it didn’t stop him from designing the coin in honour of the sport he loved.
Where To Buy The Olympic Judo 50p Coin
One of the fastest and easiest ways to find coins to complete your collection is by going online to sites like eBay. Obviously, before you buy anything online make sure you read the descriptions carefully and do a little research so you know exactly what you are getting.
The average selling price on eBay is £7.74 for this coin of the 2011 Judo 50p coin which is part of the twenty-nine 2012 London Olympic special commemorative coins.
