2001 Pokemon Japanese Neo Summer Battle Road National No. 2 Trainer CGC 10 GEM

In 2001, Pokémon tournament organizers developed a unique route for players competing in the Trading Card Game. In prior years, events only happened in the summertime because most kids did not have to attend school. In 2001, two events took place—the Neo Spring Battle and the Neo Summer Battle. These tournaments utilized a unique system known as the “Hall of Fame System,” which assigned certain cards between one and three stars. Each player’s deck could only contain a total of four stars from the cards on that list. For example, the Base set Chansey was assigned two stars, so a player could only use two Chansey cards in their deck, while cards like Jungle Wigglytuff and the Base set Blastoise were given three-star status, so participants could only use one of those cards without going over the four-star limit. The Ho-Oh-themed Summer Battle Road played out across seven events throughout Japan, with the top players from these events earning an invitation to compete in the Summer Battle Road championships. After that event, the top three players in the Junior and Senior divisions received one of the rarest trophy cards in existence. Each winner earned a 1/1 Trainer card that included a photo of themselves, and very few other events awarded cards like them. This month’s Pop Culture Premier Auction features the No. 2 Trainer card, featuring Senior Division runner-up, Takahiro Ikeda. This 1/1 earned CGC 10 status, catapulting it into the top tier for many collectors—one of whom will be blessed with the gorgeous background of this majestic Ho-Oh.

This item was flash inserted on Aug 31, 2023.