1 Yuan Biathlon, Piedfort

Issued for the 1980 Lake Placid Winter Olympics, this piedfort was part of China's first serious foray into modern commemorative coin programs following decades of near-total isolation from international numismatic markets. Piedforts — struck at double the standard planchet thickness — were then largely a European tradition, making China's adoption of the format for this series an unusual early signal of its ambitions in the collector coin trade.

The biathlon event held particular symbolic weight in 1980: China was returning to Olympic competition after a 32-year absence.