The gold-plated silver medal weighs 6.85 oz, is 5 millimetres thick and measures 68mm across.

It is attached to a 39 inch turquoise-blue ribbon embroidered with "SYDNEY 2000" in silver.

The medal features a design by Australian designer Wojciech Pietranik; it depicts Nike, the Greek goddess of victory, seated above the stadium and chariot along with "XXVII OLYMPIAD SYDNEY 2000".

This translates to "Games of the 27th Olympiad Sydney 2000".

The verso of the medal features the Olympic rings along with an image of the Sydney Opera House and an Olympic torch.

The artist's initials "WP" appear at the bottom of the design in relief.

Baker's Sydney 2000 gold medal has a starting price of $35,000 (£20,800/€26,000) ©Gerry Flannel Auctions




Baker is a four-time NBA All-Star who played for six franchises across a 13-year career.

He began with the Milwaukee Bucks in 1993 before moving on to the Seattle Supersonics in 1997.

He had further spells at the Boston Celtics, New York Knicks and Houston Rockets before ending his time on court at the Los Angeles Clippers.

He averaged eight points and three rebounds during the US run to the final at Sydney 2000 where they claimed a third consecutive gold medal with an 85-75 win over France in the final match.

Despite a relatively successful career, which has reportedly earned the Florida-born Baker more than $100 million (£60 million/€75 million), he has confessed to struggling with alcohol addiction in the past and has a had a number of legal disputes with former business partners while he is also reported to have lost around $16 to $17 million in a contract dispute with the Boston Celtics in 2004.

The auction of the mint condition medal is being run by Gerry Flannel Auctions and comes with letters of authentication from Baker.

The auction is due to run until August 20.

For more details click here.

Contact the writer of this story at [email protected]


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