The Elusive We Won! Pin

The Vancouver Sun runs a sidebar in its Road to 2010 weekly feature called Collectors' Corner ... and it seems tailor-made for this blog. Enjoy.


What: Decision 2010 We Won pin.

Trade value: $250 or more.


History: One of the two rarest Vancouver 2010 bid pins made, this emblem has a curious history. Pin-maker Laurie Artiss Ltd. made 200 of these metal pins as a gift for Vancouver bid committee staff at BC Place on July 2, 2003 in the event Vancouver was chosen by the International Olympic Committee.

Ian Tait, who now works for Artiss Aminco, was the senior Bid Corp. employee at BC Place that day. Artiss gave him the pins, to be handed out only if the IOC announced Vancouver had won. As crowds at BC Place erupted, Tait handed the pins to bid corporation staff, key volunteers and sponsors.

Because of the guesswork, the pin is extraordinarily valuable in a pin- trading world where the average retail pin gets exchanged one-for-one and even scarce pins rarely go above $50 or so. It is difficult to find and ranks up there with a limited pin the Bid Corp. gave to senior bid staff to wear in Prague. We'll review that one next week.