Background:
The Elite Four trophy card is one of the most mysterious cards in Pokemon. The card features real photgraphs of four competitors of the 2002 Best in Japan tournament, with photos likely taken at the event, and then mailed to the winners once printed. It has never sold publicly, and there are no high-res scans. Previously, we believed the card was awarded to the top 4 players of the tournament. Not much is known.
A few weeks ago, during a discussion of this card on Twitter, one of the winners (Yoshi) shared a previously-unseen card. They received this trophy card instead of the Elite Four photograph card. I was able to ask him a few questions, and given permission to share the answers. One of my favorite things about Pokemon is that you can constantly learn new information twenty years later and there are so many mysteries left to uncover. Iāve slightly modified some of the phrasing/grammar and added brackets for context, but otherwise answers remain the same. I hope you will enjoy learning about this card as well!
Q: Do you know if other people at the tournament received the Elite Four card with their photograph, or did they receive the same card as you?
**A: The top four people who participated in the tournament received a commemorative card.
I spoke to an acquaintance just now, and it seems that 2 out of 4 people received the Elite Four Photograph card. I have an illustration card [silhouettes of the Johto Elite Four Members instead of photograph, illustrated by Sugimori, slightly different from stock art - they appear to be unique art], and the other one is unknown. Prior to this week, I had never seen the Elite Four Photograph card.**
Q: Was the card you own displayed at the event, or mailed to you afterwards?
A: I think the card I have was mailed at a later date.
Q: Were there different prizes for different age divisions?
A: As far as I know, it is unclear whether the cards are different depending on the age group.
Because with only my age group, the tournament was canceled due to management trouble, and it was held instead two weeks later, and I havenāt met other age groups.
Q: What is the name of your card? Itās too blurry to read. If itās private, I understand.
A: The name of the card is āthe winnerā [Winner]. It seems that the other two people in the picture have their real names [the two winners with the Elite Four Photgraph card].
Q: Were the participants the 9 1st place winners from the [2002] regional tournaments? [These players received a Neo trophy No. 1 Trainer, the one with 6 Pokemon and e-reader]
A: [Yes.] Only the winners of the regional qualifying rounds participated in the 2002 summer national tournament, for a total of 9 participants per age group. The tournament was divided into three leagues by age group, so the total number of participants in the tournament was 27.
Q: Did players get any other prizes besides the trophy card?
A: [Seems like no]. I came in first place and my prize was this card [Johto silhouettes]
Q: What Pokemon Company staff members were in attendance?
A: I think there were about 15 staff members from the Pokemon Company, including Judges.
Q: Where did the tournament take place?
A: Tokyo