Buzz Break: 1983 Topps Greatest Olympians rack pack

From time to time, Buzz will break a box of something and post the results here. Like this and want to see more? Or maybe there's a box you'd want to see busted? Send Buzz an email at BlowoutBuzz@blowoutcards.com.

The box: 1983 Topps History's Greatest Olympians rack pack
Where to buy: Will take some looking ... BlowoutCards.com for newer stuff

Keep reading to see a full breakdown and gallery for what was in this one.

Cards per pack: 45
Base set completion: 37 of 99 (37 percent)
Duplicates: 8

Notables in this pack: George Foreman (2), Jesse Owens, Dan Gable, Bill Bradley, Mike Eruzione, Babe Didrikson, Wyomia Tyus, Oscar Robertson, Floyd Patterson, Jerry West among others.

Inserts: None made for this product.

Autographs/Memorabilia: Not for another decade-plus.

What's Buzz-worthy: Not that long ago, these were really easy and cheap finds but the recent surge of interest in everything has made this classic from the past dry up a little -- at least in pack form -- as graded copies of Muhammad Ali's card here is a pricey one in a good grade ($1,000-plus for PSA 10s, $100-plus for PSA 9s). Those grades, given the printing and cutting of the time, aren't a given but even a rack with Ali on the front will cost you around $50 -- and even that is higher than these used to be back in the day. Mine? I found this one for less than $9 ... so I figured it would be a good alternative rip during the Olympics. I had more dupes than when I last ripped into one of these but one of those was George Foreman and other notables I found here also included Jesse Owens, Dan Gable, Bill Bradley, Mike Eruzione, Babe Didrikson, Wyomia Tyus, Oscar Robertson, Floyd Patterson and Jerry West among others. ... As I noted in my past break of this one, for Olympic fans and through-the-mail autograph collectors, this 99-card set was one of the only options out there for years. It was made by Topps and carries its distinct style from the era, but isn't branded as a Topps set instead being a "Finder Image International" release under license by the USOC. (A 1991 Impel U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame set and an Upper Deck set in 1996 are two others of serious note from the past along with Topps' recent releases.) The big draw in this set is a Cassius Clay (Muhammad Ali) card that wasn't found in this pack. Others of note not found this time include Dorothy Hamill, Jim Thorpe, Wilma Rudolph, Joe Frazier and Bruce Jenner. Packs include nearly half of the set but I'd perhaps buy a pack with Ali showing if that's what you want here as the cards typically arrive in the same orders here like other old packs so people can sometimes pick out the packs with him a few cards down. In theory, three un-searched racks here should get you a set ... and it's a nice one but a challenge if you grade stuff. I'm not sure I found any nines among this pack between centering and minor corner flaws from years inside that loose wrapper.

Product Grade: A
Pack Grade: B+ (Foreman twice isn't bad, and there were a few strong names ... but nothing for The Greatest.)
Fun Grade: B-

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