Rare: fewer than 500,000 minted. Sells occasionally: 5 verified sales in the last 12 months.
5 Pounds - Elizabeth II 4th portrait XXX Olympiad, Countdown 1 (2011)
"Countdown to London 2012"
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Year | 2011 |
| Denomination | 5 Pounds |
| Face value | £5 |
| Mintage | 163,235 |
| Mint | Royal Mint · Llantrisant |
| Circulation | Non-circulating |
| Composition | Copper-nickel |
| Weight | 28.280g |
| Diameter | 38.6mm |
| Thickness | 2.89mm |
| Shape | Round |
| Edge | Milled |
| Orientation | Medal alignment ↑↑ |
| Obv. artist | Ian Rank-Broadley |
| Rev. artist | Claire Aldridge |
| Grade scale | UK (EF/UNC) |
Fourth crowned portrait of Queen Elizabeth II right, wearing the Girls of Great Britain and Ireland tiara, legend around.
ELIZABETH II D G REG F D FIVE POUNDS
Central stylised design of a cyclist mingled with large digital 1 number (to signify 2011 is one year to 2012 Olympics)
XXX Olympiad, Countdown 1 £5 Crown market value
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AffiliateXXX Olympiad, Countdown 1 £5 Crown price history
Daily limit reachedXXX Olympiad, Countdown 1 £5 Crown value by grade
Realised auction prices · ⭐ Pro Expand rows for individual sale records| Grade | Latest | Median | 30d Δ | All-time range | Sales (1yr) | Total sales | Last sale | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| VF | £6.62 🔒 eBay | £8.95 | – | £5.45 – £10.80 | 5 | 5 | 23-10-2026 | |
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About the 2011 5 Pounds - Elizabeth II – XXX Olympiad, Countdown 1
The 2011 5 Pounds - Elizabeth II – XXX Olympiad, Countdown 1 is a collector 5 pounds coin, struck in copper-nickel. It weighs 28.28g and measures 38.61mm across. Reverse design: Central stylised design of a cyclist mingled with large digital 1 number (to signify 2011 is one year to 2012 Olympics).
163,235 were struck.
Common questions
How much is the 2011 5 Pounds - Elizabeth II – XXX Olympiad, Countdown 1 worth?
The 2011 5 Pounds - Elizabeth II – XXX Olympiad, Countdown 1 has a price in one grade on MyCoinage so far: £8.95 in VF, the median of its verified sales.
How many 2011 Countdown to London 2012 £5 coins were made?
The Royal Mint's 2011 sales page lists 163,235 base-metal coins sold under the line £5 Countdown to London 2012. That is a sales figure rather than a circulating mintage. It sits between the 184,921 sold of the 2009 coin and the 153,080 of the 2010 coin.
What sport is on the Countdown 1 £5 coin?
Cycling. The royal proclamation describes a cyclist as a faceted figure with the number 1, a clock-face shown in three sections to the right, below and to the left, and the London 2012 logo to the right, all within a plan of the Olympic Stadium.
Who designed the 2011 Countdown £5 coin?
Check Your Change credits the reverse to Claire Aldridge, who it also names for the 2009 and 2010 Countdown coins. The Royal Mint's list of £5 designs leaves the series out, so the name rests on a collector reference. The obverse portrait is by Ian Rank-Broadley.
Is the 2011 Countdown £5 coin legal tender?
Yes. The Royal Mint says every crown is authorised by royal proclamation and is legal tender. It also describes crowns as souvenirs, says banks are not required to accept them, and suggests checking with your bank first. The coin was never issued into change.
How do I identify the 2011 5 Pounds - Elizabeth II – XXX Olympiad, Countdown 1?
Check the weight 28.28g and diameter 38.61mm and the metal (copper-nickel) against the specification table on this page. The reverse design is described above.
History and design
The Royal Mint marked the run-up to the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games with four £5 crowns, one dated each year from 2009. This is the third, dated 2011 with the figure 1 for one year to go, and its sport is cycling after swimming in 2009 and athletics in 2010.
The four designs were fixed by a royal proclamation given at Buckingham Palace on 17 November 2009, which replaced the single design of an earlier March 2009 proclamation. The final coin, for 2012, showed three athletes on a victory podium.
Crowns had stopped being struck to a circulating standard in 2008, so this was a collector product only. The Royal Mint's 2011 sales page lists 163,235 base-metal coins sold. That is below the 184,921 of the 2009 coin and above the 153,080 of the 2010 coin. Among the year's other crowns it trailed the Royal Wedding coin at 250,000 but sold almost nine times the 18,730 of the Prince Philip 90th birthday coin.
The proclamation describes a cyclist shown as a faceted figure, accompanied by the number 1, with a section of a clock-face to the right, below and to the left, and the London 2012 logo to the right. The clock grows through the series, from one section on the 2009 coin to two in 2010 and three here.
A plan view of the main Olympic Stadium surrounds the design, with COUNTDOWN above, XXX OLYMPIAD below and the date 2011 on the left-hand side. Check Your Change credits the reverse to Claire Aldridge.
The obverse carries Ian Rank-Broadley's portrait of Elizabeth II with the denomination FIVE POUNDS, and the edge is milled. On the cupro-nickel coin the London 2012 logo is struck into the metal, while on the gold and silver coins it is printed in coloured ink.
Collecting notes
Every base-metal coin was sold to collectors, so examples should be unworn. The large flat numeral and the open field around the cyclist show handling marks first. A logo without colour is correct on the cupro-nickel coin.
To tell the four Countdown coins apart, use the numeral and the date, which moves around the stadium border: right-hand side in 2009, bottom in 2010, left-hand side here and top in 2012.
The Royal Mint's 2011 sales page lists 25,877 silver proofs, 4,000 silver piedforts, which sold out, and 1,300 gold proofs. Crowns are legal tender, but the Mint says banks are not required to accept them.
The coin before it in the series is Countdown 2, and the first was Countdown 3.
Sources
The history, design, varieties and collecting notes on this page are drawn from these sources. Prices come from recorded sales, not from them.
- £5 Coin Designs and Specifications, The Royal Mint (read 9 Oct 2026)
- Commemorative Coin Striking Numbers, The Royal Mint (read 10 Oct 2026)
- Proclamation altering the proclamation of 18 March 2009 to determine new designs for the Countdown five-pound coins (notice L-59248-979133), The Gazette (read 10 Oct 2026)
- 2011 Dated UK Commemorative Coin Sales, The Royal Mint (read 10 Oct 2026)
- 2009 Dated UK Commemorative Coin Sales, The Royal Mint (read 10 Oct 2026)
- 2011 £5 Crown, Check Your Change (read 10 Oct 2026)
- 2010 Dated UK Commemorative Coin Sales, The Royal Mint (read 10 Oct 2026)
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