The Czech Mint  dedicated a gold half-ounce coin of to ice hockey legend Ivan Hlinka on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of one of the greatest triumphs of the Czech collective sport.

The Winter Olympics, which took place in Nagano, Japan, in 1998, made several changes. Above all, NHL players could participate for the first time in history, and the Czech Republic created a strong team of professionals. The world has never believed us too much. After that, something unexpected happened. The outsiders defeated one team after another, crushed arcivil Russia in the final and won their very first gold olympic medal. Their coach Ivan "Chief" Hlinka had a special place between them. But it was not the only success of his hockey career. Among other things he was one of the best hockey players in Czechoslovakia history. He won the World Championship as the head coach in 1999 and became the first European coach to coach the NHL team throughout the season. Who knows what he would still do if he did not become a victim of a tragic car accident in 2004 at the age of 54.

The author of the hockey coin is Mgr. Petr Horák, a teacher and a medal maker, who has wide experience with sporting themes. The reverse side of the coin was dedicated to a portrait of a charismatic coach, surrounded by the inscription "IVAN HLINKA - GOLDEN TEAM COACH - NAGANO 1998". Since the coins of the Czech Mint are issued under the license of a foreign publisher, which is the state of Samoa, the obverse side bears its necessary attributes, which are the national emblem, the name and portrait of Queen Elizabeth II, the nominal value of 50 DOLLARS (WST) and the year of the issue 2018.