Ukraine's top Winter Olympian puts gold medal up for auction
Oleksandr Abramenko, the freestyle skier who won both of Ukraine’s medals over the last two Winter Olympics, put those gold and silver medals up for auction.
Each medal is listed by SCP Auctions with bids being taken until Dec. 2. SCP expects bidding to exceed $50,000 for the gold and $25,000 for the silver.
If sold, proceeds will "benefit both Abramenko’s family and Ukrainian War relief efforts," according to SCP. In a signed letter attached to the listings, Abramenko wrote, "I am selling it now to help my country during the war."
"Putting the medals up for auction was not an easy decision," Abramenko texted Monday. "They are truly very valuable for me and for the sports history of Ukraine. Many countries are helping us in Russia's unjust war, and for that we thank everyone. Like any other Ukrainian, I help the military with their urgent needs through volunteers. Also, many people suffered from the war, some lost everything and also need financial assistance. Therefore, I decided that my medals would be useful and would bring our victory closer."
Abramenko, 35, won aerials gold at the 2018 Olympics -- Ukraine’s second-ever individual Winter Olympic title after figure skater Oksana Baiul in 1994 -- and silver last year.
Abramenko was a Ukraine flag bearer at the 2022 Opening Ceremony. Russia invaded Ukraine four days after the Closing Ceremony.
A week after that, Abramenko posed for a photo sitting on a mattress in a Kyiv parking garage with his wife and 2-year-old son published by The New York Times.
“We spend the night in the underground parking in the car, because the air attack siren is constantly on,” Abramenko texted, according to the newspaper. “It’s scary to sleep in the apartment, I myself saw from the window how the air defense systems worked on enemy missiles, and strong explosions were heard.”
Abramenko missed almost all of last season due to a knee injury that required surgery, which will also sideline him for the 2023-24 season.
He is already the oldest Olympic men’s aerials medalist and come the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Games will be older than all but one male aerialist in Olympic history, according to Olympedia.org.
"We'll see how I feel in the spring," he wrote. "I hope to recover and continue performing."
SCP previously held auctions last year for the medals from Yuriy Cheban, Ukraine’s most decorated male Olympian, plus retired Ukrainian NBA player Slava Medvedenko's championship rings to support the nation during the war.
The final price including buyer's premium for Cheban's Olympic gold from 2016 was $55,152.
