The Royal Canadian Mint (RCM) today officially released the fifth of 17 circulation coins to celebrate the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. The sport of alpine skiing is depicted on the new 25-cent coin.

"Alpine skiing is yet another sport the Mint is proudly celebrating as part of its extensive Olympic coin program," said Ian E. Bennett, President and CEO of the Royal Canadian Mint. "As we look ahead to the next two years, the Mint will continue to offer Canadians from coast to coast the unique opportunity to collect a piece of the Games."

Up to 22 million 25-cent alpine skiing coins will enter into circulation today, October 24th, and will be available exclusively at RBC Royal Bank and participating Petro-Canada outlets. Canadians can also look for these special coins in their change. Brian Grant Duff of All Nations Stamp and Coin sells single coins for collectors and offers the official holders and coin sets in All Nations’ store.

Alpine skiing has been contested at every Winter Olympics since the 1936 Winter Games in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany. The Olympic alpine competition consists of ten events, one each for men and women in the
following disciplines: super combined, downhill, giant slalom, slalom and
super-G. Canadians have won 10 medals in alpine skiing at the Olympic Games, including four gold medals.

photo - Dave Tinker

Designed by Canadian artist Glenn Green of Vancouver, BC, the alpine skiing circulation coin features an alpine skier in the centre, a stylized maple leaf and the words 'Vancouver 2010'. The obverse features the portrait of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, rendered by Vancouver artist Susanna Blunt.

While the alpine skiing coin marks the final Olympic Winter Games themed coin to be launched into circulation in 2007, Canadians can look forward to several more in 2008: four 25-cent coins will feature the sports of snowboarding (February 20th), freestyle skiing (April 16th), figure skating (September 10th) and bobsleigh (October 29th), while the 2008 Lucky Loonie will be launched prior to the Beijing Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games on July 23rd.

OTTAWA, Oct. 26 /CNW Telbec/ - The Royal Canadian Mint confirms that a small number of 25-cent alpine skiing coins produced for collector products issued on October 24, 2007 bear a 2008 date on the obverse, or "heads" side of the coin, rather than the 2007 date. This error is limited to alpine skiing coin sports cards sold exclusively at participating Petro-Canada outlets and a small quantity of Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games coin collections. The 22 million 25-cent alpine skiing coins produced for circulation are not affected.

The Mint is currently investigating the source of this error and will implement the appropriate measures to ensure it does not occur in the future. The 5th 2007 Vancouver 2010 Olympic 25 Cents coin exists in several formats. The colourized version, or Olympic Winter Games Coin Sport Card, sold by Petro Canada gas stations, mistakenly sports a 2008 date. This is the first time in my career the Mint has made a date error, and the only time I can recall them issuing a news release about a mistake they have made.

This is the second so-called mule error of the Mint’s extensive, and expensive, Vancouver 2010 Olympic coin program. It was also revealed recently that the 2007 Paralympic Curling 25 cents coin exists with the Vancouver 2010 symbol and Olympic rings on the head side, rather than the correct Paralympic Games symbols, in some of the Mint’s prepackaged Vancouver 2010 Olympic coin sets.

Mule errors, where the Mint mismatches coin dies, as in both these cases, are sought after by serious coin collectors. Previous Mule errors on Canadian 25 cents coins include the Large Bust Variety on the 1973 R.C.M.P. centenary quarter, and missing denomination errors on September and November 1999 Millennium quarters, in some of the prepackaged Mint sets.

For more information, please contact Brian Grant Duff of All Nations Stamp and Coin at (604) 689 2230.

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