By: Paul Dyzak
During the upcoming 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeong Chang, South Korea, the Special
Collections Library will offer a pop-up exhibit entitled, “Faster, Higher, Stronger: Winter
Olympics in the Special Collections Library”. Featured items are from the collections of Hal Wilson (Class of 1951), John A. Lucas (Professor Emeritus of Exercise Sports and Science and the former official Olympic historian), and Elizabeth Hanley (Associate Professor Emeritus of Kinesiology).
Wilson has developed a substantial Olympic Games collection that includes programs, tickets, brochures, maps, pins, mascots and medals from the Winter Games in 1924 in Chamonix, France through those held in Sochi, Russia in 2014. A notable item in Wilson’s collection is the very first Olympic mascot, a stylized skier named “Schuss,” from the 1968 Grenoble games.
Lucas, honored with the Olympic Order Medal in 1996 for his distinguished contributions to the Olympic Movement, had been designated as the official Olympic historian for his extensive expertise and knowledge. The Lucas collection features books, journal articles, magazines, research publications, original documents, and artifacts. Hanley is a member of the International Olympic Academy, a multicultural interdisciplinary center that aims at studying, enriching and promoting Olympism. She has collected programs, tickets, brochures, and pins while attending several Olympic Games.
The exhibit will be on display in the Mann Assembly Room (E103A Paterno Library) on Thursday, February 15 from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m., and on Wednesday, February 21, from 5 p.m. to 7p.m.
For additional information about the exhibit, contact Paul Dzyak at pjd106@psu.edu or
814-865-2123.