The 1982
commemorative
fifty cent was issued to commemorate the 1982 XII Commonwealth Games in Brisbane, Queensland. The
reverse features the Commonwealth Games logo against a map of Australia with various sports around the center including
weightlifting, judo, aquatics, boxing, shooting, archery, cycling, running, table tennis, bowling, rugby and tennis. It also
includes the
legend
XII COMMONWEALTH GAMES BRISBANE 50 CENTS. The obverse features an
Arnold Machin portrait of Queen Elizabeth II, right-facing and crowned. The
legend
reads ELIZABETH II AUSTRALIA 1982.The issue is a very common
commemorative
with very high
proof
and
specimenmintages
of the year contributing to its availability in top grades.
The 1982 Commonwealth Games in Brisbane were opened by the Duke of Edinburgh, closed by Queen Elizabeth II and took place
at both the QEII Stadium in Nathan Brisbane and the Sleeman Sports Complex in Chandler
(Wikpedia, 2013)
. Forty-six Commonwealth nations and territories participated in the Games and sports contested included athletics,
boxing, cycling, weightlifting, wrestling, aquatics, table tennis, archery, shooting, bowling and rugby. The medal table
for the XII Commonwealth Games in Brisbane showed that Australia had won by the smallest of margins from England. The English
team had actually won more medals but fortunately for Australia, they had one less gold medal. These hotly contested games
kept all the competing nations on the edge of their seats for the entirety of its duration. Canada were a not too distant
third place.
The logo used to represent the Brisbane Games was designed by Hugh Edwards, an Australian and winner of a nation-wide
competition. Edward Williams became Australian of the Year for 1982 for his role in the Brisbane Commonwealth Games. He was
also Judge of the Supreme Court of Queensland (1971) and chairman of Australia's National Crimes Commission during that time.
In 1983, Robert de Castella was Australian of the Year at the age of just 26, having won gold at the XII Commonwealth Games.
He went on to win gold at the 1986 Games and became the Director Australian Institute of Sport (1990-95)
(All Down Under, 2013)
.
Find out what dealers are paying with a subscription.