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Ok this is not an Olympic medal and I hope you will indulge me BUT this might have some interest to some of you given the topic at hand. This flag (according to my information) was given by Hitler to 1936 Olympic runner Helen Stevens.
Stevens was a gold medalist in the 1936 Olympics for the US. (By the way you can find lots about her if you go to Google and type in Helen Stevens & Hitler)
Although she was a rural Missouri farm girl she must have looked like a "pure nordic maiden" because Hitler showed her considerable interest. According to the story, of all the US athletes only Stevens was invited for a private audience. According to Stevens in her biography Hitler got a little "too friendly" but she offered him a "good ole Missouri handshake" instead. She said he invited her to stay in Germany for an extended visit at his expense. She declined but every year until the war Hitler sent her gifts including two trees that were planted at her old Alma Mater. (According to the papers they cut those trees down during the war but that is debatable)
Stevens bacame very successful and later in life donated the boxes of letters and medals and gifts from Hitler to her old college. In their wisdom, the school officials stashed the boxes in a closet. They didn't want to offend a rich alumnus but didn't want these "Nazi" items in view either. When she died (1992 I believe) the night janitors were told to throw out all the "politically incorrect" boxes of nazi memorabila. A janitor retrieved at least one box and stashed it in his pickup. My friend lives in the town where this occurred and received a visit from the janitor that very same evening. He talked the man out of one item in the box -- this flag. Years later I talked my friend out of the flag.
I guess it would be impossible to prove the artifact but a nice little flag nonetheless with a very interesting Olympic related story
The only markings are bevo and Ges. Gech. on the back.Attached FilesLast edited by Military Trader; 12-06-2009, 06:23 PM.
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