A jersey worn by basketball star Michael Jordan while representing the United States during the 1992 Summer Olympics was sold at auction for $3.03 million on Thursday, May 25.
The auction was run by Goldin, an online collectibles marketplace.
The US basketball team, nicknamed “The Dream Team”, brought together some of the best players of all time, including Jordan, Larry Bird and Magic Johnson, when NBA players were first allowed to compete at the Olympics. The US easily won the gold medal in Barcelona. The particular jersey worn by Jordan in the semi-final round against Lithuania was included in an auction featuring signed jerseys from all 12 members of the team.Another jersey worn by Jordan during the opening game of the 1998 NBA Finals was sold at an auction in September for over $10 million, setting a new record as the most expensive piece of game-worn sports memorabilia in history.
Tag: Olympic
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Basketball star Micahel Jordan’s Olympic jersey fetches over $3 million at auction
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Will Olympics come to India in 2036
By Prabhjot Singh After successfully holding the Asian Games, Afro Asian Games and the Commonwealth Games, India has now set its eyes to host the world’s biggest sporting event, the summer Olympic Games in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s home state of Gujarat in 2036.
Though India is yet to make a formal bid, its chances of becoming the fourth Asian city to hold the quadrangular sporting event will depend on the pitch it makes at the IOC session in Mumbai in September 2023. It will be for the first time ever that India will be hosting the IOC general session.
“This is the right time to host the Games. If India is making news in every sector from manufacturing to services, then why not in sports. Gujarat has several times expressed interest in hosting the Olympics. They have the infrastructure – from hostels and hotels to airports and sports complexes,” says Union Sports Minister Anurag Thakur.
Anurag Thakur, who comes from Himachal Pradesh, says that the Union Government would stand by the new look Indian Olympic Association when it bids for the 2036 Olympic Games. Only early this month, the new look Indian Olympic Association elected its first ever Olympian PT Usha as its President. PT Usha is also a nominated member of Upper House of Parliament, Rajya Sabha, and represents the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.
Though Gujarator Ahmedabad have never held any major sporting event under the banner of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), it has of late shown great inclination after New Delhi, Pune and Hyderabad to host a world level sporting competition.
Anurag Thakur in his recent media interaction said that “if India can host the G20 Presidency in such a big way, I am sure the government will be able to host the Olympic Games along with the IOA. Since the slots are already booked till 2032, the earliest India can hope to host the Games is 2036. After 2036 onwards, we have hopes and I am sure India will prepare and bid for the Olympic Games.”
Indian government, he said, would prepare a roadmap in consultation with the Indian Olympic Association to be presented during the September 2023 IOC session in Mumbai. Hosting the prestigious IOC session for the first time on Indian soil offers a great opportunity for the country to showcase its potential as a host of major sporting events.
Going by Anurag Thakur, the Gujarat Government has already initiated plans to prepare itself for the mega event.
( Prabhjot Singh is a former editor of Tribune, India)
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Olympic finalist thrower Kamalpreet tests positive for Ben Johnson drug
India’s top woman discus thrower Kamalpreet Kaur, who finished sixth at the Tokyo Olympics in August 2021, has tested positive for a prohibited substance in a test conducted by the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU), the body announced on Wednesday. Kaur, 26, has been handed a provisional suspension after testing positive for the banned anabolic steroid Stanozolol, AIU said on its website. AIU is an independent body of World Athletics that deals with integrity issues. The athlete from Punjab will remain suspended while seeking the testing of her B sample and a further hearing. Kaur can also accept the initial finding from the A sample testing and waive the second test and related proceedings. If found guilty, she faces a ban of up to four years. Kaur is in the World Athletics Registered Testing Pool (RTP) programme for 2022. The AIU announcement comes following days of intense speculation that the thrower has failed a dope test. She had denied the initial reports and the Athletics Federation of India (AFI) had not commented on the issue.
Kaur’s doping case is one of the biggest in Indian athletics and could not have come at a worse time. There is less than three months to go for the world athletics championships in Eugene, Oregon and the big year of competitions includes the Commonwealth Games and the Asian Games.
AIU posted Kamalpreet’s case on its website and tweeted: “The AIU has provisionally suspended discus thrower Kamalpreet Kaur of India for the presence/use of a prohibited substance (Stanozolol), a breach of the @World Athletics anti-doping rules.” AIU website mentions the date as March 29.
Source: HT