2000 Pokemon Trading Card Game Gym Challenge Set List

2000 Pokemon Gym Challenge Set – History 

Gym Challenge, released on October 16, 2000, is the 7th set of cards in the Pokémon Trading Card Game. Its expansion symbol is an amphitheater and black tiers, the inverse of the Gym Heroes symbol. It also has a set of 132[12] cards. Its name comes from the four Gym Leaders it focuses on (Sabrina, Koga, Blaine, and Giovanni).

2000  Pokemon Gym Challenge Set – Interest and Popularity 

Pulling a high-grade Charizard card is the “challenge” that most collectors face when opening packs of this early Pokémon issue.

The Gym Challenge 1st Edition cards were available in 11-card booster packs that consisted of seven common cards, three uncommon cards, and one rare card. Holographic cards were inserted in approximately one of every three packs.

The 2000 Pokémon Gym Challenge 1st Edition series boasts the third Charizard single (Blaine’s Charizard (#2)) produced by Wizards of the Coast.

In fact, the presence of this powerful and iconic dragon is one of the main reasons that the Gym Challenge set is more desirable than its predecessor, Gym Heroes.

The thing with this set is that it also has a lot of other powerful Pokémon, such as Arcanine and Venusaur, in relation to the game.

Cards in the 2000 Pokémon Gym Challenge 1st Edition series boast yellow borders with the name and HP at the top above the artwork. The 1st Edition stamp (Edition 1) and the Pokémon’s vitals (type, length, weight) ensue, followed by the Trading Card Game information. The card backs flaunt the Pokémon name and branding and the blue borders.

There were four Gym Challenge 1st Edition pack wrappers each highlighting a different gym leader, either Blaine, Giovanni, Koga, or Sabrina. There were 36 packs in each booster box. The 1st Edition packs and booster boxes are clearly marked with the “Edition 1” stamp.

Among the notable cards in the Gym Challenge, 1st Edition set is Koga’s Ninja Trick (#115). The first holographic card in this series, Blaine’s Arcanine, is also highly sought after. The Erika’s Venusaur holographic card (#4) is another coveted single. Another desirable holographic card is the Rocket’s Mewtwo (#14).

The current market for high-grade 2000 Pokémon Gym Challenge 1st Edition cards is relatively strong, but it’s not as competitive as it is for the Base (Complete 1st Edition) series or even the Fossil and Jungle 1st Edition cards.

2000 Pokemon Trading Card Game Gym Challenge Set – My Story

I hurried up and ordered my boxes from my local card stores and opened them. Another five boxes to complete my Pokemon Gym Challenge set. I was ecstatic that I had all the 1st Generation sets completed. I put them in my binder for safekeeping.