France

2013

Commemorative coin

150th anniversary of the birth of Pierre de Coubertin

Official Journal of the European Union

The 150th anniversary of the birth of Pierre de Coubertin, initiator of the revival of the Olympic Games, founder and first president of the International Olympic Committee. The inner part of the coin depicts the face of Pierre de Coubertin still young. Stylised Olympic rings form the background. They provide the framework for silhouettes symbolising the Olympic sports. At the left, the indication of the issuing country ‘RF’ and the year ‘2013’. At the top, the inscription ‘PIERRE DE COUBERTIN’ in semi-circle. The coin’s outer ring depicts the 12 stars of the European flag.

Additional information

Pierre de Frédy, Baron de Coubertin (1863-1937) was a French pedagogue, historian and sports official who was committed to the revival of the Olympic Games from 1880 onwards. In 1894 he founded the International Olympic Committee (IOC), whose president he was from 1896 to 1925. On 6 April 1896 the first Olympic Games of modern times were opened in Athens. The Olympic rings, which became a symbol of the Olympic Games from 1920 on, were designed by Baron Coubertin himself in 1913. Coubertin's grave is in Lausanne, but his heart was buried in a memorial column in Olympia. Beside a portrait of Coubertin based on a photograph from 1894, four sportsmen of different disciplines, in stylized Olympic rings, are represented.

Edge lettering

Designer