 The jersey Eruzione wore to beat the Soviets |
The item, one of two Eruzione jerseys to appear in the auction, brought an impressive $657,250. The other example, worn by the team captain during the final match with Finland, sold for $286,800.
The so-called Miracle on Ice occurred towards the end of the 1980 Winter Olympics at Lake Placid, New York, when Eruzione led the United States team, comprised of amateurs and collegiate players, to a narrow victory against the mighty Soviets in the penultimate group game, securing the US a shot at the gold medal in their final game against Finland.
Until this point, the Soviet team had won nearly every Olympic tournament since 1954 and, occurring during the cold war, the match has since gone down as part of American popular culture. Team USA would go on to win against the Finnish.
Eruzione had consigned several items from the legendary game to the sale, including the stick he used to score the winning goal, which sold for $262,900. Also selling was the Olympic gold medal presented to forward Steve Christoff, which made $418,250.
The top lot of the auction was a 1927-1928 game worn jersey from the legendary Yankees first baseman Lou Gehrig, which sold for $717,000 in his home town. Graded A7 by MEARS, the road style jersey was sold in original condition, though the top button is missing and the lettering has had previous restoration work that has now been reversed.
 Pandemonium ensues at the final buzzer |
In 2012, the earliest Babe Ruth game-used jersey sold for $4.4m, setting a new world record for any sports memorabilia at auction.
Paul Fraser Collectibles has a superb selection of sports memorabilia currently for sale. Sign up to our free weekly newsletter for more of the latest news from across the auction world.
