• The Royal Mint has collaborated with Team GB to launch a commemorative 50p for Tokyo’s Olympic Games
• The coin was photographed at Tokyo’s Olympic Stadium to celebrate the launch of the 2021 coin, just over one month to go until the big event
•  Originally available in the 2020 Annual Set, the coin has been struck again in 2021 for collectors to purchase

The Royal Mint, the Original Maker of UK coins, has unveiled the official Team GB commemorative 50p to honour Britain’s shining stars competing on the world stage at this year’s Olympic Games.

In collaboration with Team GB, the official keepsake features the Team GB logo and represents the return of all Olympic sports with dynamic sporting icons etched on the canvas of a 50p piece. 

Available in Gold, Silver and Brilliant Uncirculated (also available in colour), the coin launches with just over one month to go until the Olympic Games, reigniting the spirit of a nation behind the sporting heroes ‘going for gold’ in Tokyo.

To celebrate the launch, the Original Maker gifted the coin as a good luck token to Team GB qualified athletes and captured photography of the miniature piece of art outside Tokyo’s Olympic Stadium ahead of the big event.

Created by The Royal Mint’s senior designer David Knapton, the coin first appeared in The Royal Mint’s 2020 Annual Set. The new 2021 coin is available from today as an individual piece for sport and coin lovers to cherish.

Characterising ‘a year like no other’, the contemporary design bares the ‘2020’ graphic, while the obverse of the coin reveals the year of production ‘2021’ with the portrait of Her Majesty the Queen – making it a coveted addition to any collection. 

The Royal Mint’s Divisional Director of Commemorative Coin Clare Maclennan said: “We have a rich sporting heritage in Great Britain and, inspired by the stories of the athletes preparing for Tokyo 2020, we want to reignite that spirit of unity for Team GB with the launch of the official commemorative coin.

“The design of the coin, with its contemporary sporting icons, flashes of colour and commemorative date on the surface of a 50p, represent the breadth of British sporting talent coming together as one and gives a nod to the vibrancy of the host nation that will resonate with athletes, sports fans and coin collectors ahead of the greatest sporting show on earth.”

Team GB’s Head of Licensing Paul Ellis commented: “Our licensing agreement with The Royal Mint has gone from strength to strength and it gives me great pleasure to launch the official Team GB coin so that fans can show their support for their sporting heroes by owning a special commemorative keepsake with just over a month to go until the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.”

The new Team GB coin for 2021 demonstrates The Royal Mint’s continued association with Team GB which enables sports fans of all generations to share the milestone moments of their greatest sporting heroes, while uniting new and existing coin collectors with a popular family activity.

In 2012, The Royal Mint created a series of sporting coins designed by the public for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. When released into circulation, these Olympic coins are some of the most collectable 50ps. The same year, the Royal Mint won the bid to produce the official Olympic medals, showcasing their world-renowned experience in precious metals to the eyes of the sporting world. Visit the Royal Mint Experience to see the Gold, Silver and Bronze medals and to learn more.