2025-S Althea Gibson, NIFC

San Francisco's Not Intended For Circulation issue of the Althea Gibson quarter rounds out the 2025 product offering for a tennis and golf pioneer whose legacy crossed two professional sports. Gibson won the French Championships in 1956 as the first African American Grand Slam champion, captured Wimbledon and United States Championships titles in 1957 and 1958, and transitioned to the Ladies Professional Golf Association tour in 1964 as the first Black professional female golfer. Her career anchored a broader movement of integration across American athletics that reshaped what professional sport looked like for the second half of the twentieth century. The 800,000 NIFC mintage reflects production targeted at collectors who source uncirculated rolls and bags directly from the United States Mint rather than through commercial banking channels. The 2025 releases conclude the four-year American Women Quarters Program that Public Law 116-330 created in January 2021.

This issue carries the standard clad composition rather than the silver reserved for the proof set. Specifications match the standard quarter format at 5.67 grams and 24.3 millimeters with a reeded edge in 91.67 percent copper and 8.33 percent nickel clad over a copper core. The reverse, prepared by an Artistic Infusion Program designer per the United States Mint press release, shows Gibson in a tennis pose. Authentication relies on the S mintmark placed sharply above the date, the uncirculated satin finish characteristic of NIFC bag and roll product, and the absence of mirrored fields or frosted devices that would indicate a proof strike. NIFC pieces present consistent luster across the fields without the depth-of-mirror seen on proofs.

Population data through Professional Coin Grading Service (PCGS) and Numismatic Guaranty Company (NGC) is still developing. Original sealed Mint bags and rolls remain the most reliable source for certified gem examples, with sealing tags providing dealer-verified provenance for high-grade submissions. See the Washington Quarters (American Women) series history.