This rare Cold War Era gamer will be accompanied by a couple of letters of provenance, including one from Mrs. Tsygankov confirming that her husband Gennady, gifted this jersey to a Russian collector. Said collector also attested to the acquirer, whose letter of provenance is also included, that this jersey was obtained directly from Tsygankov circa 1973.

This white wool gamer was worn by Gennady Tsygankov while skating for the Soviet National Team circa 1970-74. Tsygankov enjoyed a career that spanned from the 1960’s to 1980. Gennady, being one of the Soviet Union’s top defenseman, partook in all 8 games of the 1972 Summit Series. During his stellar career, Tsygankov won 6 World Championships, 5 European Championships, partook in and won the 1979 Challenge Cup and won Olympic Gold Medals in 1972 and 1976. This talented Soviet rearguard passed away prior to his 59th birthday in 2006.

The game wear on this sweater is solid and consists of stick and slash marks, board burns, board paint transfer, un-repaired holes, washed out blood and sweat staining and some red uniform bleeding. The timeless felt style numbers and lettering remain mostly intact while an old skate lace remains tied through the eyelets. So few of these vintage Soviet wools survived from the height of the Cold War Era. This wonderful vintage example originated as a gift from Tsygankov, a 2-time Olympic Gold Medal winner some 45 years ago, choice!