Nine-year-old wins competition to design coin for London Olympics

A new 50 pence coin to celebrate the London 2012 Olympics and Paralympics, designed by nine-year-old Florence Jackson from Bristol, England, will be officially launched this week.

Florence beat more than 17,000 entries to win the contest, which was sponsored by a long-running BBC children’s television program.  She’s the first child ever to design a UK coin.

After winning the competition, Florence said: “I am so excited. It was a real surprise to win.

“I’d never entered a Blue Peter competition before, but really wanted to take part because I love drawing.”

The coin depicts a high-jumper, a subject Florence choice because she  thought it looked fun.

This year marks 40 years since the introduction of the 50 pence piece - the UK’s most distinctive circulation coin.

In April, double Olympic gold medalist Becky Adlington helped unveil a special collectors coin to mark the countdown to the London Games.

UPDATE: Sometimes even the simplest stories become mired in controversy.  Turns out Florence’s father is a (soon-to-be) executive of the TV network that aired the contest. Wonder if that will affect the outcome of the coin competition? We hope for Florence’s sake, that it doesn’t.