Georgian Olympic Museum

A little known museum in Tbilisi, Georgia, is the Georgian Olympic Museum. The Georgian National Olympic Committee (GNOC) is an umbrella organization for the Georgia Olympic Academy, the Georgian Olympians’ Association, the Olympic Museum, and 12 regional bodies.

The GNOC was established in 1989 and gained full recognition from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 1993. GNOC is now housed in the National Olympic Committee House – and one room is dedicated to the Olympic Museum. It is not signposted – you just walk into the Committee House (a recently renovated building specifically for the GNOC) and it’s on the right hand side.

The museum has an interactive ‘table’ that displays information about each individual Olympic medal winner, as well as several videos screening the medallists’ performances at their respective Olympic Games since Helsinki in 1952 to the present day.

In glass cases on the walls are displays of clothing worn by the Georgian Olympians. For example, there is the T-shirt of Victor Saneev (1945-), who was a three time Olympic champion and silver medallist in the triple jump (1968, 1972, and 1976); the 1980 judo kimono of Shota Khabareli (1958-); and the sporting costume of weight lifter Georgi Asanidze (1975-), who was a two time Olympian (2000 and 2004).

Items of Olympic equipment include the racing skis of Koba Tsakadze (1934-), who was a four time Olympian in ski-jumping (1956, 1960, 1964, and 1972); the 2010 skating boots of Elene Gedevanishvili (1990-), three time Olympian in figure skating (2006, 2010, and 2014); the 1964 fencing mask of Nugzar Asatiani (1937-1992); and the 1980 javelin of Saida Gunba (1959-).

There is also the luge sled of Nodar Kumaritashvili (1988-2010) who died at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympic Games in Canada, in a luge accident during practice. A commemorative stamp with Nodar’s image and luge is enlarged and displayed on the wall opposite the luge sled.

The front gardens of the GNOC House has two arches with gold-plated stars representing each gold medal won by a Georgian athlete since 1952.