The first-ever Olympic hockey tournament took place in 1896, and ever since then, the sport has been ruled by the golden generation. In fact, as of 2018, there have been 82 Olympic gold medals awarded in hockey, with the majority of them going to members of the “Krugerrand” club. But who are these elite athletes? Let’s take a look.
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How Many Gold Medals Do The ‘Krugerrand’ Club Collect?
The ‘Krugerrand’ club is named after Paul Kruger, an Austrian industrialist who helped develop the country into one of the great hockey powers of the early 20th century. His estate, which included a large share of the nation’s mints, produced the perfect coin for a hockey player: the Krugerrand. The first-ever Olympic gold medal in hockey was won by the United States in 1920, and since then, the American teams have dominated the tournament. They have won 12 of the last 13 gold medals, with the lone exception being in 1928, when Canada won the first all-North American hockey tournament. But the domination of the “Yankees” is beginning to falter, as it has been 17 years since the last American team claimed the gold.
The ‘Krugerrand’ club now counts among its members some of the greatest hockey players ever. Here’s a look at how many gold medals each one has won:
The Iron Man, Ivan Hlinka
Hitting the 1000-game milestone is arguably the greatest accomplishment in hockey. The only player to do so is Ivan Hlinka, who played on five Czechoslovakian men’s national teams that won the gold medal in Helsinki in 1952 and Stockholm in 1960. The strongest team he played on was the “Magic Prague” club, which consisted of current and former NHL players, such as Ed Staniksy, Henri Richard, and Bobby Hull. The team was managed by the legendary Scotty Bowman, who also coached Hull in Chicago and the New York Rangers. It’s no wonder that Hlinka is considered one of the greatest athletes of all time.
The Flying Finn, Lasse Oksanen
Another Finn to make the list is Lasse Oksanen, who was a two-time Olympic gold medallist at the 1964 Tokyo Games and 1968 Mexico City Games. The 1968 gold was especially sweet for Oksanen, as his team, Finland, had been denied the gold in Budapest four years earlier because of procedural errors. One of the great controversies of those Games was the disqualification of the United States in the semifinal match of the men’s hockey tournament, due to allegations of cheating. The Americans went on to win the silver medal, which was later vacated by the IOC.
Finland dominated the 1960s, winning five of the six gold medals and 11 out of 12 possible golds. Since then, the nation has been a bit of a hockey dynasty, with it winning a record 18 medals, 13 of which were gold. Also notable is that Finland did not win a single medal from 1948-1960, but since then, has won four consecutive silver medals, three of them being consecutively in 2012, 2014, and 2018.
The Golden Boy, Pavel Bure
Not to be outdone by his half-brother, Vladislav, who won eight gold medals in the 1980s, Pavel Bure became the undisputed king of the gold medallists in the 1990s. The Father of Russian hockey, Bure won four Olympic gold medals, all of which he won in the years following the dissolution of the Soviet Union. One of the most memorable events of those Games was Finland’s shocking upset of the heavily favored Swedish team, which at the time consisted of many of the country’s most decorated athletes. Bure’s goal in the final, which won the quarterfinal and semi-final matches, stood as the winning score as the Finns stunned the world by winning the gold medal.
Bure’s teammate at the 1992 Albertville Games was none other than the great Mario Lemieux, who would go on to win four straight Stanley Cups with the Pittsburgh Penguins. This is the same Mario Lemieux who became a Canadian citizen in 2011.
The King Of The ‘Krugerrand’ Club, Wayne Gretzky
Wayne Gretzky is considered by many to be the greatest hockey player of all time, and the achievements of the “Great 8” certainly back that theory up. The first-ballot Hall of Famer won four gold medals at the Olympics, with the last one coming in 1994. He also won five Stanley Cups with the Edmonton Oilers, and the all-time scoring record of 594 goals and 1,049 assists makes him the greatest goal scorer of all time. It’s no wonder why Gretzky is in the “Krugerrand” club, especially as he was also named the MVP of the 1976 Canada Cup, which was played in his home town of Montreal. He remains the only player to win all three major international tournaments in the same year: the Olympics, the World Championship, and the Canada Cup. However, his three-year hiatus from the NHL following the 1988-89 season, as well as the tragic death of his wife, Cathy, took a heavy toll on him, and he only competed in the 1994 Winter Olympic Games, where he won his last gold medal.
The Captain Of The ‘Krugerrand’ Club, Igor Larionov
One of the greatest defensemen to ever play the game, Igor Larionov captained the Soviet Union to two gold medals and nine consecutive overall wins at the Olympics. The only drawback to Larionov’s brilliant career was that he only played for the Soviets in the early 1990s. After the breakup of the Soviet Union, Larionov continued to play for his national teams. At the 2004 Games, he helped lead Russia to the gold medal, their fifth consecutive Olympic win. Larionov is a member of the Russian “Golden Generation,” which also includes such stars as Yarygin and Gagarin, and one could easily make the case that he is the greatest skater of all time.
The Comeback Kid, Mark Messier
Mark Messier never gave up on his dream of winning a gold medal in hockey. The former New York Ranger and Edmonton Oiler captain tried his hand at several sports in his playing days, but hockey was his true calling. It was after his retirement from professional hockey that Messier turned his sights to coaching. He is currently the head coach of the New York Rangers’ AHL affiliate, the Hartford Wolfpack, and also contributes to the team’s community outreach as a ceremonial captain. It was during his playing days that Messier won his first four gold medals, with the only exception being in 1994, when he didn’t compete due to injury.
In the years following his retirement, Messier was involved in several failed attempts at getting back into the NHL. It wasn’t until 2002 that he finally made it with the Hartford Wolfpack. There, in what was then the Northeast Division of the NHL, he led the Wolfpack to the Calder Cup finals, which they lost to the Nashville Predators. The following year, he was named the AHL coach of the year.
But it wasn’t long before Messier’s Rangers fell apart, and he was dismissed from his post as head coach of the AHL affiliate. He was subsequently let go from his position as an assistant coach with the team as well. It was during this time that Messier finally retired as a player, but he hasn’t stopped coaching. He has continued to work with the Junior Devils organization in the New Jersey area, and is currently in his fifth season with the club’s men’s team. If he keeps up this level of performance, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him coaching in the NHL again soon.
The Guy Who Has The Most Medals In One-On-One Competition, Wayne Gretzky
Besides winning four gold medals at the Olympics, Wayne Gretzky holds the world record for most medals in one-on-one competition, with 16 golds, 14 silvers, and 9 bronzes. Not only is this impressive in and of itself, but it also makes him the most decorated player of all time in any tournament. It is worth noting that Gretzky is also one of the most popular players of all time, with more than 400 goals and 1,000 points in his Hockey Hall of Fame career. Perhaps that is why, despite dominating the sport for decades, Gretzky never got tired of competing, and continued to play in the NHL right up until he was 49 years old.